


The Royal Fanfic Romance.

by moonaffairs



Series: The Royal Fanfic Romance [1]
Category: Choices - Fandom, PB - Fandom, Pixelberry - Fandom, PlayChoices, TRH - Fandom, TRR - Fandom, The Royal Heir, The Royal Romance - Fandom
Genre: Abuse, Abusive Ex, Abusive Parents, Bad Ex, Best Friends, Custody Battle, Emotional Abuse, Emotional Manipulation, Gay, Kissing, Love, Love at First Sight, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Multi, New York, Plotting, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Scares, Spying, Unwanted attention, fake relationships, gay relationships, parenting, royal parenting, royal pregnancy, single mom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:14:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 34
Words: 151,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23386441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonaffairs/pseuds/moonaffairs
Summary: This is the adventure of a lifetime for a young, single mom who works hard as a waitress to get a better life for her and her daughter. When she meets the Crown Prince of Cordonia and is convinced by her family and her daughter to go and compete for a chance to marry him, things start to unravel. Royalty is not what it seems and danger lurks everywhere. Is love enough to prevail?DISCLAIMER - Almost all of the main characters except for Ashley Fabiano, Sarah Fabiano and her family are not mine, they are characters from Pixelberry's Choices: The Royal Romance.
Series: The Royal Fanfic Romance [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1682131
Comments: 97
Kudos: 15





	1. A little backstory

If you asked my 10 year old self what did I want to do when I grow up, the answer was easy. I wanted to be a princess, plain and simple. The 10 year old back then didn’t know that in the next 12 years she was going to fall madly in love with a guy she barely met and be pregnant. She didn’t know that the boy she loved was going to manipulate and leave her, and she’d have to face her parents on her own. And, certainly, the girl did not anticipate that he would ever return. But this wasn’t really a princess story.

I was a 22 year old trying to figure out life with my almost- five year old sassy Sarah whilst I worked as a waitress in a small restaurant. Real princess material, huh?

I was telling myself I was doing this for the paycheck and it did get me through the worst days. It wasn’t a bad job, especially since it was overflown by tourists who, when found out about American tipping culture, tipped quite nicely. I wasn’t going to buy a Ferrari anytime soon but it was good money, couldn’t deny that. My best friend Daniel also helped a lot. He was the first person to make me feel comfortable and encouraged me in every way. He was the best friend anyone could ask for.

I still yearned for a life better than this. For me and, of course, my daughter. We often talked about what would we do if we got to live in a huge house in New York by ourselves. Just me and her. What color would be paint the walls and what late night snacks we’d buy just for us and so no one (like my younger sister) would eat our snacks in the middle of the night. What TV shows or movies we should watch together. How many rooms we needed for all of our hobbies – because in our minds we had tons of hobbies and lots of free time. Oh, and we definitely wanted a dog. My mom didn’t want dogs in her house so we never considered it but me and my sassy girl were definitely dog people. But I couldn’t afford any of our dreams right now. All I could afford was living with my parents. Well, I could rent an apartment in the size of a shoebox in an inconvenient location so we’d be off on our own… But it wasn’t what we really wanted. Or needed. I also needed all the help I could get since I did have to go to work in the most random shifts and needed my trusty babysitters – my parents and my sister. 

Living with my family was hard, I couldn’t deny it. It was especially hard for me, because I just didn’t feel comfortable or accomplished with myself and my parents probably could feel that. They tried to make us feel as comfortable and homey as they could but it just wasn’t that easy. They provided us with everything we ever needed and for that I will forever be grateful. They’ve been the best throughout whatever life has thrown at us. And believe me, life wasn’t too easy on us. My parents ran their own little bakery and even if it’s New York, it wasn’t as easy as it sounds. They have been flooded, there have been break-ins. A lot of things have caused my parents a lot of headaches. And when I told them that there was going to be another life to feed, clothe and bathe, my lovely (and stressed!) parents did not freak out. We talked, I dropped out of school for a while but later still got to graduate. We made a plan and we stuck to it – and it worked. I was always the rebellious middle child so it wasn’t as easy for me to follow instructions that someone else had laid down before me but I finally had someone else to think about. I couldn’t afford to be egoistical anymore. My pink hair and my septum piercing had to go and I had to turn into a hardworking person to provide for us.

When I went through the breakup with my ex boyfriend, it was heart-wrenchingly painful but deep in my heart I knew it was for the better. He was manipulative and something was off about him right at the start but that did not matter to me at the time. I thought I was in love and as people do, when in love, I ignored all the bad things and enjoyed the good ones. So I enjoyed his conversations, his smile, the way when he laughed, he used to snort. Everything about him seemed cute to me. He had dark brown hair and these dark brown eyes that you could melt into – I wanted to melt into him. Paul was the prince of darkness, in my eyes, also dressed as one and I wanted to be his princess of darkness. He was so charming. Full of it but I secretly loved it because of my own insecurities. He was the first person I told I was pregnant. We weren’t dating for a long time, just about six months so I was worried about his response. He was the one who calmed me down. He was the one who took me to the doctor to confirm it. Paul took me by the hand and told me that it would be okay. That it would be great – we had a chance at being the best parents ever. He told me that the baby couldn’t have chosen better parents, we would be perfect for him. 

“Him?” I asked.

“Yeah, I can feel it, it’s going to be a boy!” Paul said excitedly. I was excited too, just imaging a little copy of us into this tiny little baby. He got me so excited for the future. We kept it as a secret from both of our parents – he wanted it that way. He wanted us to do a gender reveal of the baby and then reveal our brilliant plan to them, seperately. First, we would go to my parents and then to his. His parents were strict but they would understand, he said.

We found out that we would be having a girl on the 1st of February. When we walked out of the clinic, Paul seemed so distracted. I knew he was disappointed. I wasn’t – I was excited to be raising this little sweet girl. I was thinking about both dinners we had ahead. Will Paul still be excited to tell them we were having a baby?

“I’ll cancel the dinner,” Paul finally broke the awkward silence between us.

“Why?” I asked. I felt so confused. Why did the gender of the baby matter so much to him?

“We’re not ready,” he said and nodded to himself. Was he talking to himself or me?

“Well, I am ready,” I replied quietly.

“Then go on! Tell your parents! Go fucking ruin my life then!” Paul screamed at me in the middle of the busy road. People were looking but he didn’t look like he minded. Well, I did. I felt a rush of blood to my cheeks and I felt self-consious. I glared at him with daggers in my eyes and started walking off.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he said stepping in the path in front of me.

“Paul, please move,” I replied.

“Why are you walking away from me?”

“I don’t want to argue,” I continued coldly. I did not like him like this nor I wanted to do this on the street. I was not good with confrontation.

“WELL FUCK, ASHLEY. WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO? BE EXCITED THAT WE’RE GOING TO HAVE A DAMNED GIRL IN THE FAMILY? I NEVER WANTED THIS IN THE FIRST PLACE!” he was screaming off the top of his lungs and I held my breath. If I didn’t, I knew I was going to cry. Don’t cry, do not cry in fron of him, I told myself.

“You told me yourself that you wanted this, when we found out that we were pregnant, ” I replied calmly and started looking around. As more and more people were paying attention to us, I started to feel a bit of nausea. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to be. This wasn’t right.

“Yeah, I wanted this. I wanted a FUCKING boy, don’t you understand? A boy. It’s obvious that you’re too dumb to understand, you haven’t even finished high school,” he said it with such anger in his voice and he started laughing. It didn’t seem funny to me. My hands were starting to shake. I felt angry and sad at the same time. I didn’t know how to react, so I just tried to leave him there, on the street but he didn’t let me go. He just stood in front of me. He did it again and again. Until, finally someone stepped in.

“Let her go,” I heard a familiar voice behind me. As I turned around, I knew it was my brother’s voice. I was so happy to see him, under the circumstances. I ran into his arms and he held me for a while. I finally let myself weep. I didn’t want to, but I held it in for far too long. At this moment I was so thankful to the universe that I even had a brother to protect me and that he was still living in New York.

When I turned around, I didn’t see Paul on the street at all.

“Did he run away?” I asked

“Coward,” my brother nodded and was still holding me closely. When we started walking towards the bus stop to my parents house, I told him everything that had happened in the last few months . That I’ve been pregnant for almost six months, that we were hiding it from our parents, that he wanted to raise the baby ourselves in his apartment and that we kind of, sort of, had a plan but this outburst ruined everything. At least for me.

“Was it the first time he had been like this?” my brother asked and as much as I wanted to deny it, I knew I shouldn’t. He would find out the truth sooner or later.

“No,” I replied.

“Has he been violent towards you?” he asked and I could see him getting very tense.

“No. No, he didn’t beat me or anything. We sometimes get into big arguments and he shouts unpleasant things at me. He always apologizes profusely, though,” I said as if it would redeem him in my brother’s eyes. I knew it wouldn’t.

“Ashley, this is crazy. I want to hunt him down,” he said and I nodded because I understood. If it was the other way around, I’d be angry too.

“I know but what good would it do?”

“It would make me feel better.”

“He is my baby’s father,” I said and exhaled loudly.

“I know, I know,” he said and hugged me harder.

When we finally got to my parents house, it was time to come clean to everyone. About my pregnancy, about what Paul did, about what we had planned and what we wanted to do – live on our own in Paul’s apartment.

“Did you really think it would have worked?” my mom asked after we had the long conversation.

“I hoped it would,” I said quietly.

“Would you just become a housewife?” my dad asked and I nodded. I suppose so.

We never talked about my career but Paul was a good graphic designer, he was also saught out by a few companies so we wouldn’t have to worry about money too much.

“Darling, would you have been happy leading that kind of a lifestyle?” my mom asked and I didn’t know what to answer. I didn’t think so. But I wasn’t really thinking about it too much – I just wanted Paul and my baby to be my priorities.

We devised a plan that I followed carefully, I had to. I wasn’t the most excited but I at least this way I had a chance of finishing highschool, a year later than my classmates but at least this way I’d get to finish highschool at all.

I also confronted Paul by text but all he did was brush me off. Me and Tom walked to his apartment one day and he didn’t even open the door of his apartment. He just screamed at us to fuck off when Tom started banging the door with his feet. When we walked away, he texted me saying that I ruined everything and that if I wanted anything from him, I had to sue him for it.

My parents tried so hard to convince me to sue him because he deserved it but I really didn’t want to. I didn’t need a thing from that garbage person. If he really didn’t want us in his life – we really didn’t want to be in his. If anything, just remembering about him, angered me. When I finally explained to my family that I’d rather work twice as hard than to have his money at all, they all understood and finally accepted my decision. It wasn’t one that came in vain, I just didn’t want his presence in my life in any capacity.

So, naturally, that after five years of no contact, I was surprised to see his face appear in the restaurant I worked at. He looked older. Not wiser, but just.. older. Like he didn’t age too well. I was surprised, because he was 20 when we met, so he must be about 25 now. He looked at least 30, if not older. In a suit, a bit of facial hair. Paul definitely didn’t resemble a “prince of darkness” anymore.

I was lucky that my best friend Daniel was working this shift with me. I quickly pointed at Paul and mouthed “baby daddy”.

“Go see him,” Daniel mouthed back. I nodded.

I quickly looked into the mirror. I didn’t look perfect but good enough. Some bags under my eyes, my hair was a bit messy but he didn’t deserve to see me when I did look perfect. I mustered the fakest smile I could as I approached him.

“Welcome to “The Golden Room”, can I help you with anything?” I asked in the most professional manner and fluttered my eyelashes at him.

“Ashley! Do you have a minute?”

“Well, I am working,” I smiled back.

“Can you take a break?”

“My break is in 10 minutes, but I don’t want to waste it on you,” I continued smiling and he, of course, looked surprised. Of course he did, the overconfident dick.

“Look, I just want to see MY, well.. OUR daughter,” he started and I just turned around.

“Meet me outside in 10 minutes,” I said.

“Thank you,” he replied and I sighed.

“Do you need backup?” Daniel asked, hovering protectively around me.

Daniel was the bestest friend you could ever have and I understood why he was worried. I did tell him every bad thing Paul did and said to me while we were together. But I wasn’t the same naive girl he left.

“No, I’ll be okay. But thanks for this,” I hugged him. He was always the strong shoulder I could lean on. When I started working here, I was a wreck and felt like I couldn’t fit in – Daniel helped me so much. He made me laugh and taught me that this job could actually be fun and I was so thankful for him in my life. I’d like to think that we made a terribly funny team, me with my awkwardness and clumsiness and him, with his confidence and ability to make everyone laugh.

I stepped outside and felt nervous. I told myself to not feel this way. He should feel nervous talking to me. He dumped us. He was the bad guy in this scenario.

“You’re so beautiful,” I heard Paul’s voice behind me, so I slowly turned around to face him. I was confused by the compliment but that was probably intentional.

“Yeah, the uniform really makes my eyes pop,” I laughed it off sarcastically and already put my guard up. Something was off, why would he need us five years later?

”Ashley, I really need to see my daughter,” he took a step in my direction.

“Why do you really need to see MY daughter?” I corrected him.

“I’ve never seen her. Your social media accounts are private and I’d like her to know her dad,” he continued.

“Paul… I don’t think you realize that she doesn’t have a father. She has a mother, grandparents, an uncle, an auntie but no father is in the picture. And when have you ever wanted to be a father?”

“I know I’ve made mistakes but don’t you think I deserve this?”

“Deserve? You? You don’t deserve her. You haven’t even asked for her name. You don’t even know her birthday. How could you think you could ever deserve her? Where were you when she was sick? Where were you when she had to have her diapers changed? Where were you when she got hurt and needed a hug?” I asked in the coldest tone. I couldn’t comprehend how people could be so entitled.

“And whose fault is that? You’ve never even told me her name or birthday!” he screamed and I stood there, shocked for a minute. He was trying to turn this against me? Oh no.

“You told me that you didn’t want anything to do with us. That everything was my fault. Why would our life suddenly be of any interest to you? You dumped us,” I didn’t want to hear anything more, so I slowly backed away but I felt his hand on mine, pulling me on him.

“I have the right to know my daughter,” his eyes were cold and I freed myself from his grasp.

“THEN FUCKING SUE ME!” I shouted at him as loud as I could. I wasn’t fond of the conversation, so I just left him there and went back into the restaurant. He wouldn’t dare follow me inside. I didn’t want to look crazy, I didn’t want to cause a scene but he just got me so riled up. How did he even find out where I was working?

I felt like someone had just punched me in the gut again and again. Why? Why was he back? Maybe he really wanted to see Sarah? But why now? It was almost her fifth birthday and I really didn’t want anything ruining it…

Daniel came into the break room and I smiled.

“Is everything okay? What happened?”

“Oh, the father of the year happened. He says he deserves to see Sarah,” I recounted the encounter to Daniel.

“Is he crazy?”

“He might be.”

“Are you really okay?”

“I’m just sad,” I smiled at him and he nodded. He hugged me and left me alone for the remainder of my lunch break. I didn’t even know why I was so sad but I just sat there, thinking about my own life choices. I looked at the clock. It was only 17:58. I wiped my eyes with the sleeves of my uniform and walked into the restaurant.

“Is the restaurant okay?” I asked Daniel and he laughed.

“We can manage it for an hour without you, Ash,” he said.

“Sometimes it doesn’t feel that way,” I laughed

“At least we get to work together for a few hours until I have to go,” he smiled.

“Oh, yeah, did you have a date tonight?” I asked quietly.

“Yeah, there’s a new pizza place that opened up next to her house and we’re going to check it out!” he said enthusiastically.

“Pizza place? I wouldn’t think of you as a pizza place guy,” I laughed.

“Why?” he laughed with me.

“Why don’t you bring her to a restaurant since you actually work in one?” I smiled.

“I wouldn’t dare bring a nice girl here. You’d mess up the order and then I will have to work on my day off,” he laughed.

“Hey! It was one time! And besides, I wouldn’t be your waitress. You’re too fussy,” I teased.

“Yeah, right. Besides, I can’t let just anybody meet my goofball,” he laughed. It was so comforting. He was so comforting. I smiled. Daniel was good looking, he was buff, funny, and also, he was nice to Sarah. I couldn’t fathom why I wasn’t attracted to him. My family adores him and my mom always made remarks about us dating and I always laughed it off. It was weird, I didn’t even want to date him exactly but I wish I did date someone like him. Was that crazy? Maybe my mom was right? Maybe it was my self-consciousness telling me that I’m ready for a relationship?

While me and Daniel made jokes in the almost empty restaurant, it was almost time for him to leave.

“Sorry babe, I gotta go in five minutes. There’s a bachelor party coming in and you have to close up, okay? You remember everything you have to do?” he asked as if he was a worried mother.

“Charm the bachelors and close the restaurant so you don’t have a headache in the morning?” I asked teasingly.

“You always do. You’ll charm the socks off that bunch but the headache I can deal with. The restaurant is mostly tidy anyway and I can tidy anything that needs tidying in the morning – it’s going to be slow anyway,” he said and I nodded.

Our manager, Chad, walked up angrily to me and Daniel.

“Less chatting, more saying goodbye, there are some important people coming in!” Chad said and I nodded and waved a goodbye to Daniel.

I turned around and the bachelor party was already in front of me. Four men, three of them wore really nice suits, except for one wearing a denim jacket. Was this a fashion statement or a rebellious one?


	2. Once Upon A Time

I smiled at all four of them. I suddenly felt self conscious and very self-aware. These men were waiting for me to seat them and I was just standing there, smiling like an idiot. The man in the denim jacket looked so much like Paul so I made a mental note to avoid him at all costs. He also didn’t seem like the chatty type.

I sat them down in our best booth and gave them the restaurant menus.

“Hello gentlemen. My name is Ashley and I’m going to be your waitress tonight,” I said in my customer service voice.

“Four whiskeys please,” the Paul look-a-like said and I nodded in response.

“Wait, I don’t want whiskey,” another one said and he smiled at me. I smiled back, he looked friendly.

“I drink whiskey only on special occasions,” another one of them added.

“It’s a bachelor party, what is more special than that?” Paul look-a-like made his case and pleaded with the others until they finally agreed.

When I brought the guys their drinks and took their orders, one of them asked for my attention and as I looked into his eyes, I felt like I was melting. Oh no. It was happenning again. Only this time it didn’t seem like I was melting into darkness. His smile was so kind.

“Miss, could you show me to the bathroom?” he asked and I blinked.

“Of course,” and while we walked to the bathroom, there was an uncomfortable silence. Uncomfortable because I made it that way. This guy was gorgeous, he looked like a Greek God and I still couldn’t believe that I noticed him only after he spoke to me. Something in his voice was very soft. Very familiar. He made me feel fuzzy inside just as I realized that I wanted a relationship – was this fate or was I just falling for with the first guy I see?

When he walked out, I couldn’t stop but flat out stare at him. He was the opposite of Paul – blonde, kind, friendly. God, I was the worst waitress ever this evening.

“I hope we aren’t burdening you, Ashley. When the website said that this place was still open, we had to make a reservation, but it looks like you were closing up ” he said quietly and smiled at me.

“Oh, no, we’ve been pretty empty in the evenings. You’ve got an hour and a half until closing time, sir,” I smiled back.

“You can call me Liam,” the blonde man said.

“Okay, Liam.”

“Are you enjoying yourself this evening?” his question surprised me. Was I enjoying myself? Huh?

“I’m okay, suppose. It could always be worse,” I tried to laugh it off but he looked concerned. It was quite cute, actually.

“I hope you do enjoy yourself,” Liam added and I nodded at him.

We walked back to his table where the men were having a lively chat.

“Everything okay there?” I asked and all of them stared back at me.

“Could we get some more fries?”

“Maxwell, you don’t need more fries,” Paul’s look-a-like said sternly.

“Let the boy have his fun,” the oldest man in the group said. Or I thought he was the oldest. Well, he looked like he was the oldest, with his haircut and the fact that he did look like he had the fanciest suit out of all them.

I nodded and went to the kitchen to get more French fries. As I walked away, I couldn’t stop thinking about how different they were. The denim Paul seemed like a serious older brother, the blonde had this protective aura about him, Maxwell seemed like the childish one and the older one was like an authority figure. Well, not really authority but he seemed like the coldest one out of the bunch. It was a strange bunch, but not unusual, especially for New York.

“Yay! My fries!” Maxwell exclaimed and literally grabbed the plate out of my hands when I came back.

“Maxwell! Manners!” the oldest one said and Maxwell looked surprised.

“Don’t be like Bertrand, Tariq,” Maxwell said and Tariq’s face seemed to soften for a bit.

“Yeah, we have enough of Bertrand at home.”

As they settled their differences, I turned around to clean the tables. I didn’t want Daniel to deal with a dirty restaurant, even if he says that it’s okay.

“Is your date going well?” I texted him. If it isn’t going well, he’s probably going to text me back right away. But of course, after a few moments I heard the familiar ding!

“No, she likes pineapple pizza!!!”

“So? I like pineapple pizza,too.”

“No, you don’t get it. She doesn’t like Hawaiian pizza but just pizza with cheese, ketchup and pineapples!“

“Oh god. How are you coping?” I laughed at this. Daniel was such a drama queen sometimes. Or was this a sarcastic joke that I didn’t get?

“Ashley?” I heard a soft voice calling for me so I looked up from my phone instinctively.

“Yeah?”

Liam was standing in front of me and he looked right into my eyes. His gaze didn’t waver and he seemed to radiate confidence.

“Do you have any other plans tonight? I’d love to buy you a drink,” he smiled and I felt myself freeze up. Hold up, was he asking ME out? Could I even say no? Probably. But I really didn’t want to.

“I’d really really like that,” I answered with a big smile on my face. I had butterflies in my stomach. Just like with Paul. But this was different. Somehow I knew this was going to be different. Let’s hope he likes children because if he doesn’t, it’s game over and I really didn’t want it to be over while it hasn’t even started yet, I said to myself.

“We were thinking of heading to a nice nightclub,” Liam continued.

“Oh? Which one?”

“We’re not from around here so we were hoping that you might have some advice about that, ” Liam looked at me intently and I blushed.

“I recommend going to the hottest club in town, Kismet.”

“That sounds perfect. I know the guys want to go crazy tonight, I’ll go tell them.”

“Okay, let me finish up in here and I’ll meet you out in front,” I said and made a mental note to myself to call my mom to make sure it’s alright with her. Well, she didn’t have to know the full truth, I could just say that I’m swamped at work. She didn’t have to know that I was going to go out with four strangers I met in my restaurant. When I put it that way, it did sound dangerous. But they all were so harmless.

I looked at the final ding! in my phone and saw Daniel’s texts.

“I’m not lol. Just being friendly to her.“

“How are you coping with the bachelors?“

“Are you charming their socks off?”

“I think they are charming MY socks off, haha,” I sent the text and looked at their booth. The conversation was flowing and they really seemed to be hitting it off, all four of them, even with their differences, they seem to come from a place of understanding. It must be nice.

They all stood up and Liam waved at me. I waved back, close up after them and sighed. Was I crazy for doing this? I decided to text my sister instead since she was always on her phone.

“Hey, Rach! I’m gonna work late today, tell mom not to wait up.“

“Hey! No probs. Will tell her. Even tho u r lying to us lol“

“How am I lying?“

“Go have fun, we’ll talk about it after work.”

When I read my sisters text, I sighed loudly. This is why you don’t have strong bonds with family members – they will know that something’s up instantly. Luckily, my sister was always on my side and I knew I could tell her everything. Just like she told me everything. Growing up we were not the best of friends but I was so happy that both of us grew out of that phase – it’s nice to actually have a family support system and someone so close that you felt like you could tell them everything.

When I finally cleaned up the restaurant, I went into the changing rooms. Luckily, I always had a change of fancy clothes in my locker – I was always ready for something happening after work, so I had a short grey sparkly dress ready to go. Just as I put in on, I heard another ding!

“Hope you have fun tonight!” it was Daniel.

“Thanks, going out with the guys. Hope you’re having fun!” I texted him back, excitedly.

I decided to put on some eyeliner and to fill in my eyebrows. If I had to go to a club with four gorgeous guys, I might aswell look like I fit in. When I stepped into my silver shoes, I looked into the mirror and, honestly, felt like Cinderella who was just going to the ball with her Prince Charming.

When I walked outside the restaurant, I couldn’t stop smiling because all four of the guys were staring at me.

“What?”

“We didn’t expect you to clean up so well,” the one named Maxwell said and we all laughed.

“Well, I think you looked good in the waitress uniform, too,” Liam assured me and I was thankful for that. Even if it was a lie – my uniform was a weird white shirt that didn’t fit me right even though it was my size and black slacks that made me feel and look like a potato.

“So is she like our tour guide?” the Paul look-a-like asked and put his hands in his pockets. I glared at him. Did I look like a tour guide?

“Ashley was kind enough to agree to show us around. She’s doing us a favor, Drake, so play nice,” the firmness of Liam’s voice echoed through the street. I smiled thankfully at him.

When we entered the club, the guys immediately went to the dancefloor.

“Time to party!” Maxwell threw his arms in the air.

“As if being with you tonight wasn’t punishment enough,” Drake said and I watched him go to the bar with Tariq.

“The guys seem to be fitting in well with the crowd,” Liam said behind me and I turned around to face him.

“Why don’t you want to fit in?”

“What makes you think that?”

“The way you’re acting. You’re putting them before you and that’s a quality that I can understand,” I smiled at him and he smiled back.

“How about that drink?” he asked and we both slowly walked to the bar.

“I’ll take the cherry soda.”

“Nothing alcoholic?”

“I’m not much of a drinker with being…” I stopped myself from going further. I usually didn’t share this right away with guys I just met but he made me feel so safe, I couldn’t help it.

“With being?” his eyes were staring into mine.

“Well, I am..I am a..” I stuttered. I took a big breath. I felt so anxious because I was hurt in the past and I didn’t want to scare him away. I didn’t want to make him think that I was looking for a dad for my daughter. I wasn’t. I wasn’t even going to let him meet her right away if we did develop a relationship. So many thoughts were racing through my head at that moment.

“You can tell me,” his voice was soft, calming. He waited until I was ready and I was so thankful for that.

“I am a mom to the most little adorable girl ever,” I finally spoke and he smiled.

“Wow. That is big. But that’s also beautiful, how old is she?” he looked so supportive. Not scared. Not afraid. I really didn’t expect this but I was so glad it did go this way.

“Almost five. It’s her birthday next Friday,” I answered and he asked so many questions about Sarah. We talked more about what it was like – being a teenage parent in this day and age. He also asked about Paul and I honestly told him everything. Even the situation that transpired today. It felt like a weight had been lifted from my chest and that I was in a safe environment. It was so unusual but it felt right.

“I’m so glad we met. Meeting you has been the best thing about this trip,” Liam said quietly.

“Wow, that’s nice to hear but it also means that your trip wasn’t really a fun one, I suppose?”

“Oh no, I’m very grateful for the guys bringing here but it’s just that there’s one thing I really wanted to see since I was a child – the Statue of Liberty. It’s our last night here, we’re flying back to Cordonia tomorrow and even though, I’m so happy that the guys made the efforts to make my bachelor party special, I’m sad that I won’t get to see it,” he answered and I gasped.

“It’s YOUR bachelor party? You sure are flirty for an engaged guy. I don’t think your fiancee would be too happy about that,” I said. I probably sounded like a bitch but I didn’t care. I was a bit annoyed that he didn’t disclose the information sooner.

“That’s the funny thing. I don’t really have a fiancee… I don’t even know who I will marry, only that I will have to pick her by the end of the year,” he said calmly.

“What does that mean?”

“To tell you the truth, Ashley… I am the Crown Prince of Cordonia and we have slighty different marriage traditions for royals than other countries do,” Liam explained and my eyes widened in shock. What did he just tell me?

“You’re bluffing aren’t you? I told you about having a daughter and then you freaked out and made this story up. I knew this was too good to be true,” I turned around to leave. The story was ridiculous. Why would the Crown Prince of Cordonia come to America for a bachelor party? No, this was insane. I didn’t even know how to feel, I just wanted some air and to go home.

“Ashley,” I heard his voice behind me and I started to walk faster until I was out of the club.

“Ashley!” I felt someone grabbing my arm gently and I sighed.

“What?”

“I’m not lying. I would not lie about this,” Liam said softly and I looked into his eyes. Why did I want to kiss him so much? I relaxed a bit.

“Sorry for freaking out on you, ” I whispered.

“It’s alright. Believe me, I know how unbelievable it really sounds. But I didn’t want you to think that it was because you are a mother. I admire that, it means that you really do understand what it means to put someone before yourself and that is a seriously attractive quality, for me. You are the most fascinating woman I have ever met, and it just astounds me that someone could leave you like that,” he carressed my cheek and I sighed. He was smooth. So smooth.

“Why are you so charming?”

“It’s part of the job,” he chuckled and I chuckled with him.

“Why do I feel so safe with you, Crown Prince of Cordonia?”

“I feel the same way, Best Mother in New York,” he said and it made me laugh.

“As if. I wish I was.”

“Sarah probably would agree with me,” he smiled and we sat there, on a park bench, beside the nightclub in a comfortable silence. Why was sitting in a stranger so comforting? More comforting than talking to some of my regular clients in the restaurant.

“Do you absolutely have to go back tomorrow?” I asked quietly and he nodded.

“Right now, I wish I didn’t have to, though. ”

“Well, let’s leave that for tomorrow. “

“Are you suggesting something?”

“Well, I am a local here and I do know how to catch a boat tour to the Statue of Liberty,” I looked into his eyes. I loved seeing people’s eyes glow with excitement and he smiled at me.

“Aren’t the boat tours closed after midnight?”

“Lucky for you, one of my best friends has his second job there and I can call in a favor.”

“Lucky me!”

I called Daniel to see if he could take us but he seemed grumpy and sleepy which was a bit unusual for him – he loved doing boat tours in his free time. But since he wouldn’t do it, I called our mutual friend Lydia and as luck would have it – she said she could take us right away if we could get to the pier fast enough.

“Well, let’s go!”

“What, you really did it?”

“I promised you a boat tour, didn’t I?” I smiled at my little victory. If we only had tonight, then we had no time to waste.

When we got to the pier, I saw Lydia waving her hand at us.

“Honestly, until we saw Lydia, I was thinking that you wouldn’t be able to pull this one off,” Liam said.

“Well, then you don’t know me really well.” I smiled at him.

“I wish I could get to know you better,” he said with a tinge of sadness in his voice.

“There’s tonight,” I assured him and we both smiled at each other. There was tonight. When the view of the Statue of Liberty came close, Liam didn’t take his eyes off it. He stared intently at it.

“Are you imagining what you could do if you had the freedom of the commonwealth?” I asked quietly and he turned his gaze to me.

“Yes and no. While I’m very grateful for the life I am able to live, sometimes, in moments like these, I wish I was free to do whatever I wanted to do. I don’t want to go home and to marry a girl I barely know. And she probably isn’t ecstatic to be marrying an almost complete stranger, too. It feels weird now that I’ve met you and know what a real connection is,” he said and his words were tugging into my heart strings. Oh, how I wished that things would be different and we could explore everything together. So I made the decision to kiss him right then and there. Passionately. With hunger. I deserved this, especially, knowing that I will probably hear about him marrying some perfect girl from some foreign tabloid anyway. He kissed back. It felt like he was equally as hungry and when we stopped, I took a big breath.

“I literally took your breath away, huh?” he made me laugh. All the way back to the pier, we sat next to each other, talking about what could’ve happened if we met in different countries as other people. It was cute.

“I can’t believe I got so attached to you in one night,” I said and he nodded.

“Me neither. Ashley, you’re amazing. I wish you all the best moving forward,” as he said that, I choked up. I felt like crying but I didn’t want him to see me like that, so when we finally parted ways, I slowly walked to the cab. Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry. But I couldn’t help myself. When the cab driver saw me, he looked like he understood.

“Breaking up is hard isn’t it?” he said and I nodded. It’s the hardest.

When I got home, I saw that the TV in the living room was on. Rachel was asleep on the couch and as I turned the TV off, I heard her behind me.

“Tell me about your date,” she said excitedly and then she saw my face. My eyes were probably swollen from all the crying and I had no doubt that I looked horrible.

“It wasn’t a date,” I replied sadly and looked into her eyes.

“What happened? Oh gosh, I’m so sorry!” she hugged me and I told her everything that happened tonight. How I met Liam, how he was the Crown Prince of Cordonia, how he was too perfect to be true, how we talked about Sarah and about the boat ride to the Statue of Liberty.

“It’s literally a modern tragedy,” Rachel said while still hugging me.

“Don’t I know it,” I replied.

When I woke up in the morning, I felt terrible. The fun was over and I had to go to work, again. Even though I knew that me and Liam had limited time together, it still hurt. I was hoping that the morning would make me feel less miserable, but it didn’t. And I had to pretend that everything was okay. That sucked. I had to come back to the real world.

“Mommy, I made you breakfast before work!” my tiny human open the door to our room and dragged me downstairs to the kitchen with her. The sunlight hit my eyes and I squinted.

“What’s that?” I looked at the mush on the table before me. I wasn’t a fan of mush, so I was terrified to try it.

“It’s oat porridge with bananas, grandma helped me make it,” Sarah happily exclaimed.

“Well, grandma isn’t the best cook, you know,” I replied, still looking at the mush. I really really didn’t want to try it.

“Mommy, it’s healthy for you!” as she said the words, I nodded. And did try the mush. I was expecting it to be way worse. I smiled at Sarah and made yummy noises.

When it was time to leave for work, I kissed Sarah on the nose.

“I love you so much mommy!” she said. Those words just filled me up with so much happiness and love.

“I love you more!” I replied and we hugged.

“Okay, sweetie, mommy’s going to work,” my sister came in and I waved goodbye to both of my girls. I was so grateful that Rachel was on babysitting duty today, they usually had so much fun.

I was already in front of the restaurant, when I saw a familiar figure approach me.

“Maxwell! Is Liam okay?” I asked. I was so surprised to see him here.

“What? Oh yeah, we were just heading back to Cordonia so Liam can find someone to marry and all that jazz but I wanted to invite you to join us in the festivities, ” he said calmly.

“What?”

“Well, you normally wouldn’t be allowed to join but I want to sponsor you.”

“Sponsor me?” I was in disbelief. Was he saying what I was thinking?

“Well, I’m from a noble house but I don’t have any sisters, so we don’t have anyone in contention to marry the Prince. Instead we can sponsor any girl we choose. And I’ve decided that our house will sponsor you,” he was wearing his winning smile.

“Why me?”

“Well, it’s not only for you. I saw the way Liam looked at you last night. Believe me, I’ve never seen him look so happy as he did when we met you. And to be honest, I don’t want him to lose that. But we’re crunched for time. The plane leaves in less than an hour,” he said and even though I really wanted to say yes, I knew I couldn’t. I just couldn’t leave everyone to go after a prince, no matter how I felt about him. I was not about to miss my daughter’s birthday party for a silly crush I had.

“I’m sorry but I have to decline,” I said quietly.

“What? Why?”

“It’s my daughter’s fifth birthday on Friday and no matter how I feel about your Crown Prince, I can’t leave her side on her birthday. She is my priority,” my heart felt heavy but I knew I was doing the right thing. Liam would most definitely understand.

“You’re a mother to a five year old?” Maxwell looked shocked and I laughed at his reaction.

“I am,” I smiled.

“Hats off to you, girl. But you know, the Masquerade starts next Saturday. It’s the start of the competition for Liam’s heart, if you will. If I sent a plane for you after your daughter’s birthday, would you say yes? I was hoping to prepare you better but this would also do nicely, if you’re a fast learner,” he looked into my eyes and I was compelled to say yes. It sounded like the perfect plan.

“Sorry, but I don’t think so, ” I finally replied. I couldn’t imagine myself gone from my daughter’s life for any chunk of time. He nodded, as if he understood. I smiled gratefully and off he went.

My heart ached but I knew that it was the right thing. When I told my mom and my sister the bizarre situation, my sister hit my shoulder.

“Ow! Why would you do that?” I said, touching the place where she hit me.

“Are you completely insane? ” my sister was screaming and my mother, who usually, wasn’t a fan of violence, shook her head.

“I agree with your sister,” she said and my eyes went wide.

“How could you think this was a good idea, mom? I understand Rachel, she’s 17, she has lived through romance novels, but mom, I thought you would be more practical,” I was so surprised at both of them. Didn’t they understand the situation?

“Honey, sometimes the stars all align so that you could meet your person. I mean, he was kind, sweet, he loves the fact that you have children, you have chemistry. What more could you need?”

“Besides the fact that there will be other girls from noble houses vying for his attention?”

“He’s going to choose you, d’uh,” Rachel said as if it was THAT obvious. It wasn’t, not to me. The woman Liam would marry would be a queen, he is a Crown Prince. I wasn’t fit to be one.

“I’d miss Sarah so much, I can’t leave her for long periods of time,” I said.

“Think of it as a vacation from mothering. We could still text, FaceSpace, anything you’d want. It’s the age of the internet! Believe me, if we told Sarah what her mommy was up to, she would be all for it, ” my mom exclaimed.

“Is there even good internet in Cordonia? There must be, I doubt the royal family of Cordonia has a bad internet connection,” Rachel smiled to herself, deep in thought.

“What about my job?” I asked and both of them laughed.

“Oh, Ash. There are a ton of waitressing jobs in New York, if you’d ever need another,” Rachel said.

“It’d be hard to leave Daniel,” I added.

“He would understand, honey. He is your best friend. He wants you to be happy. Unless..” my mom looked at me and lifted her eyebrows.

“Unless you have feelings for him yourself, Ash?” Rachel added and I shook my head.

“Of course NOT, we’re just good friends!”

“Ugh, imagine us, going to Cordonia.. for your wedding. That’d be so exotic!” my sister kept dreaming.

“Well, too late for that, ” I said.

After this, I, of course, went on the world wide web to search for anything I could find on Cordonia and it’s royals. I found Maxwell’s brother. Well, he looked like a super grumpy man. Wouldn’t want to meet him in New York.

I checked Cordonian News online almost daily, looking at the pictures of Maxwell, Drake and Liam. There weren’t many pictures of Tariq, he was named as the Prince’s “close friend” and that was it. I sighed. Oh well.

My daughter’s birthday party was fast approaching so I didn’t have any more time to waste thinking about what could’ve been. We filled her room with heart shaped balloons while she was sleeping and her gifts were under the bed. Me and Rachel made her favorite breakfast food – pancakes with strawberry jam and when we knocked on her door, the look on her face was worth it. She beamed.

“Mommy, is it finally my birthday?” she asked and I nodded.

“Yes! You’re five years old today, honey!”

“Happy birthday my sweetest!” Rachel shouted beside me and we ran up to hug the birthday girl. Unbelievable. It seemed that only yesterday I brought this tiny human back from the hospital and here we were – celebrating her fifth birthday. Motherhood was the hardest but most satisfying journey I have ever been on.

We transformed our backyard into a partyzone with a bouncy castle, ice cream stand, make-your-own-burger stand and, of course, we got a kiddie pool. Having a summer baby came with it’s own perks – we could enjoy everything it offered.

The festivies were great, we played games, bounced a lot, ate a lot. We invited Sarah’s whole kindergarten class, our closest relatives and friends, so, of course, Daniel was there. It was late already and everyone had gotten ready to leave, but Daniel was sitting on the bouncy castle all alone so I sat right next to him.

“Didn’t enjoy the party?” I asked and he looked up at me.

“I did. I just haven’t been in a very happy mood, though.”

“Oh?”

“Well.. it’s just.. and… Forget I ever said anything,” he stood up so I stood up beside him.

“Daniel, what’s wrong?”

“I just feel like… ” Daniel started to explain but he was interrupted by a scream.

“Oh dear! Oh dear! ASHLEEEEY!” I heard my mom shout so I sprinted towards the house.

“Mom, what’s -” and then I saw them. Both of them. Maxwell and Drake in the flesh. Not in the pictures that I searched, but they were here. In my house. Right now. How? I stared at them in disbelief. Drake was, of course, dressed in his denim jacket but Maxwell still looked fancy in his baby blue tux. Both of them together looked comical, more like cartoon characters, not like actual royal family members.

“There’s the birthday girl!” Maxwell pointed at Sarah and gave her a little wrapped box.

“Mommy, I love your new friends!” she said and we all laughed.

“What are you guys doing here? I told you that going to Cordonia wasn’t an option,” I angrily scolded them when I walked over.

“Oh, but it is, you see!” Maxwell answered with such enthusiasm, that I couldn’t stop smiling.

“It’s kinda my fault,” I heard my sister behind me.

“WHAT?”

“I kind of messaged all of the Cordonian messageboards online, trying to reach any trace of royalty online. Like a phone number, some gossip, a website royals ran, anything to get into touch with them,” she admitted but she didn’t look guilty. Of course she didn’t. I sighed. Why does everyone think that they know what’s better for me?

“And, of course, I am on most Cordonian messageboards, because my hobby is reading comments about Cordonian royals. I love reading what people are saying about my fashion choices and to know the latest goss,” Maxwell exclaimed.

“Don’t say “goss” anymore, it makes me feel violated,” Drake intervened.

“So you two got in contact and plotted to get me to Cordonia anyway?”

“Pretty much,” Rachel beamed. I looked at her and I didn’t know whether to be happy or angry. On the one hand, I was happy to know that my family supports this crazy Cordonian trip but on the other – it was infuriating that no one listened to me and what I said.

“Darling, now you have to go,” my dad said behind me.

“Oh, not you too!” I widened my eyes.

“Oh, come on. I know you’re scared of this crazy adventure. I’m scared, too. But the spark between you and Liam was real. At least let’s try to win this!” Maxwell said enthusiastically, so I sighed.

“Okay, okay. Just let me pack a few things,” I said and everyone cheered me on. I couldn’t believe that I was going to Cordonia for a guy after I had celebrated my daughter’s birthday and that everyone in my family was so onboard with this. It was so silly. But I secretly loved every minute of it.


	3. Welcome to Cordonia?!

In the crazy commotion, my parents ushered me upstairs, so I could pack for the big trip. I took Sarah’s hand and both of us ran upstairs, giggling. I wasn’t sure she understood what was happening, but she did look happy. I looked into her little smile and I realized I didn’t want to say goodbye to her. I really didn’t.

“I’m not going,” I whispered and Sarah looked taken aback.

“Mommy, you should go,” she whispered back to me and I just stared at this angel baby.

“But I’m going to miss you so much,” I looked into her eyes and felt tears coming into my eyes. It was heartbreaking to even be in this position. I wanted to go with her.

“I’m going to miss you so much but if you don’t go, you’ll be sad. I never want you to be sad. Besides, you’ll definitely win the prince’s heart and we’ll both be princesses! Won’t we?” she smiled at me and I couldn’t stop smiling back, holding back my tears. I already knew how great she was but she sounded like a such grown up that it sounded surreal to me.

“I love you,” I hugged her and she hugged back.

“I’m going to be strong for you,” she smiled and wiped the tears away from her cheeks. It was heartbreaking, for both of us. We were a team and going away without her somehow felt… wrong.

Knock! Knock!

Both of us turned around to see Daniel in the door.

“Can we chat?” he asked and I shook my head.

“Could we not do this right now?” I wiped the tears from Sarah’s cheeks and hugged her close.

I knew what he was going to say. I always knew what he was going to say if it concerned another guy. Daniel always told me to be cautious, guys only want one thing, they would never want the real me. I wasn’t ready to have this kind of conversation with him just yet. I was finally excited about something in my life and I didn’t want him to ruin how I felt, even if I knew in my heart, he wanted the best for me.

“I just wanted to tell you to be cautious,” Daniel said, stepping into the room.

“Mommy will marry the prince, she doesn’t need caution!” Sarah happily exclaimed and she made me smile. Oh, she was so lovely.

“You know, you have to kiss a lot of frogs to actually get to a prince,” Daniel said and Sarah shook her head in response.

“I don’t think so!”

“Well, I think so,” he replied, his gaze intense as he looked at us. The conversation was so uncomfortable.

“Daniel, if you’re not going to be supportive, I think you should leave,” I sighed. There was no point in having a fight right now.

“How could I be supportive of you flying off and leaving your daughter like that?” as he said the words, he stepped closer to us and it just got a lot more uncomfortable. Why was he making this so hard?

“Daniel, please…”

“Ashley, you’re not thinking clearly. Are you really going to quit your job, give up your life for this.. this random man?”

“I wasn’t going to but my sister and..” I stuttered.

“Your sister? What does she know of life? What does she have to do with something that is ultimately your life and your decisions? She’s not leaving a child behind,” he said it with such passion in his eyes that it got a little scary. I was starting to get a little angry of all the mom guilt he was putting on me. How dare he? How dare he say anything about being a parent without even being one? He didn’t know the hardships but spoke about it like he was an expert.

“I think the lady asked you to leave,” a raspy voice cut from behind him. We looked up to see Drake, he was leaning against the wall, with his arms crossed. He had an annoyed look on his face.

“I’ll leave when Ashley has the courage to talk to me!” Daniel clenched his fists and gritted through his teeth.

Daniel didn’t look like himself at all. He looked so angry and aggressive, it was pretty scary. I felt Sarah tense up, so I hugged her shoulders as if to say it’s going to be okay. It was scary for her too, because she was used to seeing the “friendly Daniel”. He was always so nice and warm around her.

“Didn’t you hear her? She doesn’t want to. Let’s all be friendly and leave her to pack with her daughter, ” Drake said and moved a step closer to Daniel.

Please, please, don’t let this escalate. Not in front of her, I said to myself. I didn’t want Sarah to see two guys battling it out in front of her. She didn’t deserve this.

Daniel turned his head to look at us and then he looked back at Drake.

“You’re lucky they’re here,” he said in a threatening voice and pointed at us. That made me feel so weird. Why was he like this? Why couldn’t he be more supportive? Did I expect too much out of a best friend or was this some guy macho thing I couldn’t possibly understand?

I looked at both of them a sighed loudly.

Daniel looked at Sarah and just walked away, stomping his feet on the ground. You could hear him angrily walking down the stairs.

“Well, this was intense, ” Drake said and I nodded.

“Super intense. Thanks for stepping in,” I smiled. He didn’t have to, Daniel wouldn’t hurt me but still, it was a nice gesture.

“No problem, I’m always here to talk down ex-boyfriends.”

“I’ve never dated him,” I replied so quickly that I surprised myself, as if it was a bad thing if I did.

“Daughter’s father?” he looked quizzically at Sarah and me.

“Daniel isn’t my dad,” Sarah started laughing at the assumption and I shook my head at him.

“So who did I scare away? Your brother?” Drake crossed his arms again.

“Daniel is mommy’s best friend,” Sarah exclaimed happily and I nodded. It was great having someone else speak for me, so I didn’t have to.

“Did mommy know that Daniel is in love with her?” Drake smirked and I widened my eyes. He was not! I shook my head.

“Daniel is just a friend!” Sarah repeated the same sentence I did to my parents everytime me, Sarah and Daniel had a day out together. They always made comments about us being a little family but I always dismissed them. We weren’t like that. At all. At least, not from where I was standing.

“Well, he clearly was thinking otherwise, ” he added.

“He’s just worried about me, that’s it,” I desperately wanted this conversation to be over. I really believed that he was worried about me. He was there for me, when I thought no one else was, so to think that he had other motives than to be my friend, made me feel uneasy. I didn’t want to taint our friendship by thinking like that. I knew he was a good person, even if he did act like a dick sometimes. His intentions were good, it was enough for me.

“You’re just too naive. That won’t go down well in court life.”

“What else won’t go down well in courtly life? My everyday clothes?” I asked sarcastically.

“Probably. Your every day clothes here are probably different than any other woman has at court,” he shrugged.

“Well, I’m wearing what I want!” I exclaimed.

“Probably not, since house Beaumont is sponsoring you. Bertrand will be all over you. But don’t worry, we have a boutique there, so you’ll have plenty to choose from,” Drake smiled. He actually smiled but he did that only to mock me, so I smiled back the same mocking way.

I got angry at myself for not thinking ahead about the clothing situation. I really didn’t want to look ridiculous and embarass Liam in any way. So me and Sarah repacked again. And again. Until I only had the fanciest clothes I owned in my suitcase. When I was finally done, me and Sarah looked at each other.

“Mommy, you’re going to do great, I trust you!” she hugged me. Sarah smelled of strawberry ice-cream and right now it was the most calming scent I could ever imagine.

As we walked downstairs, I realised that I had to say goodbye to everyone. By the end I was bawling. Sarah gave me one last hug.

“Mommy, go fight for your love!” Sarah whispered in my ears and that made me laugh out loud through the tears. Oh, how I was going to miss her positive attitude.

Maxwell patted my back and when we finally walked outside of the house, it didn’t feel as liberating as I thought it would. But I felt encouraged. I knew that with the support of my daughter, I could achieve anything. I was ready to conquer Liam’s heart and show him what true love and passion felt like.

The drive to the airport was pretty quiet, all three of us had our own thoughts to process but the moment we stepped into the airplane, it seemed like Maxwell regained his energy.

The airplane itself was plain, not what I expected of royal members of the Cordonian court. I kind of expected a stewardess bringing us each a glass of very expensive champagne, talking to us in a French accent, telling us that she’s here for anything we want. Instead of that, we were the only ones in the plane, except for the pilot. Or pilots? I didn’t even know if he had another pilot but I didn’t want to ask Maxwell or Drake because I didn’t want to sound unintelligent.

I took a seat in the front, next to Maxwell, ready for take-off.

“Let’s say goodbye to New York and a big “hello” to Cordonia!” he exclaimed happily and I grinned. His happiness was contagious.

“You should know that you shouldn’t trust the ladies in court,” Drake said grimly.

“Drake! Don’t scare her straight away! But he does have a point, they’re all very fixated on Liam. Most of them not because of him but because of who he is, unfortunately,” Maxwell added. I nodded in response. It was fairly obvious that most royal marriages were not “met him in a bar and fell in love” type of a story. Most ladies probably either wanted the crown, the public’s adoring attention or just wanted to appease their parents. I could understand that.

“Liam’s not going to give you the crown, even if he loves you. He’s not naive like that, so the first thing you should know about him that he’s loyal. So loyal that he would even marry the wrong person for him, if it meant that she was a good queen,” Drake added and I nodded. Yeah, that did seem like the Liam I met. Devoted to his people, his country. Always thinking of others. Scared to take risks or let himself believe he can achieve personal goals, too.

“So you need to prove to Liam and to Cordonia that you are not only the woman of his dreams but also the queen that Cordonia needs, ” Maxwell said, in a serious tone.

“Ookay,” I replied. That was a lot for just one person but it felt like it was meant to be. My heart was aching for him, telling me that he was worth fighting for.

“Don’t worry, Bertrand is going to make sure that you know everything and I mean EVERYTHING about our sweet little country,” Drake smirked. That sounded like a threat but since I was desperate, I just nodded. I did need all the help I could get.

The pilot notified us that we would be descending in a few minutes.

“Okay, let’s freshen you up,” Maxwell said and combed through my hair.

“Wha-what?” I got confused.

“Just look outside the window, while we freshen you up, there’s going to be press outside when we land and we all would like the first impression to go smoothly, ” Drake said while spraying me with a bottle of perfume.

“Why do you care?” I asked but Maxwell shushed me. I didn’t like to be shushed, so I crossed my arms and stared at the window. I didn’t regret it – the scenery outside my window was a beautiful one. A sparkling ocean, swaying trees. It took my breath away. I got so distracted, I didn’t care that the two boys were fussing around me. I had never been outside the state, much less the country so everything here was new for me. It was strange, knowing that I was seeing everything with my own two eyes, not scrolling through Pictagram, looking at my friend’s vacation pictures.

“Okay, you’re done!” Maxwell said, looking at me approvingly.

“Is this the royal treatment?” I smiled.

“This was a one time thing, Fabiano,” Drake walked away to his seat.

“How did you know my last name? I don’t recall giving it to you,” I felt myself getting tense. Did they know every single thing about me?

“Well, your dad introduced himself as Mr. Fabiano, so I took a wild guess,” he shrugged.

“Ashley, don’t be so paranoid. We do have to know everything about you anyway, so we know how to stir the narrative. The press will be digging around and they’re going to use everything against you, especially since you’re not Cordonian. ” Maxwell said in a calm manner. I widened my eyes. No one told me that someone is going to be digging around my past.

“Oh, don’t look so surprised, Fabiano. You’re in the big leagues now, did you think everyone would be as warm and accepting as we are?” Drake added, even before I had a chance to voice my concerns.

“Warm and accepting?” I raised my eyebrow at him. Well, someone here was cocky and it wasn’t me or Maxwell.

“If you think I’m not friendly, I don’t want to know how hard you’re going to take the tabloids,” he looked at me but he didn’t look angry or annoyed. More like.. worried. I took my time mulling over his words. How could I take on the duties of a royal if it was hard for me to ignore one person? I exhaled. I wasn’t going to let him bother me. Or anyone. I knew why I came here.

I took one step out of the plane but I already could see the cameras everywhere. Literally everywhere. The press was all around the airplane. Men and women with cameras, microphones and annoyed stares.

I heard buzzing and lots of voices around me but I didn’t pay any attention to it.

“Lord Maxwell, who is this charming lady?”

“Is your house sponsoring this mystery lady?”

“Is she even royalty?”

It surprised me at how quickly the questions were swarming in, we were barely off the airplane! Maxwell and Drake were protecting me from both sides and I noticed guarded men stationed all around the press, talking into their walkie-talkies. They were probably there to make sure that the paparazzi doesn’t do anything to the royals. Was the press here really as crazy as it was in the US, though? I took a big breath. It was starting to get a bit overwhelming.

A quick car ride later, we were finally at the palace. And it was magnificent.

“Is this really where Liam lives?” I asked Maxwell and he nodded.

“It’s also where we will live.”

“WHAT?” I gasped as I looked at the huge building before me. It did look big enough for a hundred people, at least. The gardens around it were impeccable, everything was so green, I felt like I was transported into my own fairytale. Living in the same castle as Liam did sound like a perfect opportunity to show him what I was capable of.

“Most of the nobility reside here while the social season is underway. Also the other noble ladies that are vying for Liam’s hand…” he paused and looked at me. I gulped. I knew what I was getting myself into. I was ready for the challenge.

“Okay, this is my cue to go. I’ll see you around, Ashley. If you’re lucky enough,” Drake smirked and walked away rapidly. Wow, what was he in a rush for?

Maxwell lead me inside of the castle, in the grand stairway. It looked like it was made of marble and covered in the most exquisite red carpet I’ve ever seen. It was probably even more luxurious than Hollywood’s red carpets.

“So what’s the deal with Drake? Does he not like me or something?” I abruptly asked.

“Oh, no. Don’t mind him, he just doesn’t feel like he fits in.”

“And why not?”

“He’s a commoner, and a very private at that. Even if he is Liam’s best friend, it’s not that easy fitting in,” Maxwell said seriously. I nodded. I had no idea about fitting in here yet, but I knew I would probably have to prove myself again and again.

Maxwell lead me to the stairs, turned to the right and lead me down a corridor. I tried walk slowly behind him, remembering where to go but I had already forgotten. I sighed. It was such a huge castle. And it was a bit overwhelming since I realized I wasn’t going to see Liam until the Masquerade which was tomorrow.

Suddenly, he turned around.

“Are you okay?” he asked, with worry in his voice.

“Yeah, it’s just a lot. Especially for the first day,” I smiled.

“Well, this is your room. If you have any questions, my room is next to yours and my brother Bertrand’s is right next it, ” he smiled back.

“Bertrand is your brother, right?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Oh, I read about him while searching for Liam, he seemed super … serious,” I chose not to use the word “grumpy” because I didn’t want to offend Maxwell in any way.

“Yeah, he can be very intense. He is the Duke of Ramsford, after all. Well, his official title is Duke Bertrant Beaumont and he’s the heir, I’m the spare.” Maxwell smiled.

“I’m sorry you feel that way,” I patted his back.

“It’s not so bad, being the spare, you’ll see. Now here’s your room,” he put in an ornate key into the lock and opened the door of my bedroom. It was a lavish guest room with gilded ceilings, full-length paintings and the bed was filled with fluffy pillows. It was so totally not me and beige wasn’t my color scheme, but the gesture was nice. I was treated like a royal, like an equal, even if I wasn’t. You could tell just by looking at the furniture that it was not only expensive but of high quality. My bedroom at home seemed so different and plain, in comparison, especially since most of my furniture came from Uskea.

“It was a long day, so you should probably get some sleep before tomorrow. “

“Yeah, tomorrow’s the big day.”

“Yeah, your debut in the Cordonian Royal society and we want you to look your best,” Maxwell added and I agreed. I did have to look my best to impress not only the royalty, but Liam and all of the Cordonian people.

Maxwell dragged my suitcases in and immediately remembered what I forgot back home.

“Maxwell, I didn’t bring any makeup or makeup remover with me! Help! I don’t want to wake up with puffy eyes!” I was desperate and he just laughed.

“We have a fully stocked bathroom, with all the beauty products.”

“Will there be anything matching my skin tone?”

“Most likely, since your sister gave me a list of what you use and we take bathroom supply restocking very seriously,” he said.

“What?”

“Well, we need you to look your best, that includes makeup.”

“That’s a bit…invasive, don’t you think?”

“I don’t really think it’s THAT invasive but I was raised here, you know,” he shrugged and I nodded. We both said goodnight and after making sure my face was clean of any makeup residue, I moisturized and went over to the bed. It was so soft but firm at the same time. Not at all like my Uskea bed.

Ring!Ring! I picked up my phone.

“On the second ring! Hey Ash, I just recently saw you on Cordonian News, walking with the boys, just wanted to make sure you’ve settled in,” I heard Rachel’s voice and I almost cried. I was so happy to hear from her right away.

“Everything here is new and scary, Rach and I miss you all, and I’m all alone here,” I honesly said. I didn’t expect to feel homesick right away but I did, especially since I was in Cordonia but didn’t have a chance to even see Liam yet. It felt so lonely and cold.

“I know, hun, tell me everything. We will call each other almost every day, okay?” she assured me and I told her all of my worries. Most of them were laughable but her laughing about the things I was worried about was calming me down. It made my problems look a lot smaller than I thought they were. I was in this beautiful palace, everything was taken care of. I should find the chance to relax.

In the morning, I felt refreshed. After me and my sister hung up, I did cry a little but I felt so much better today – I was finally going to see Liam! My heart was beating faster just thinking of seeing him again. I couldn’t believe that I could miss someone I didn’t know very well,that much.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Yes?” I turned to the door.

“It’s me, Maxwell. I’m going to take you to your hair appointment!”

“It’s always open!” I shouted as I was putting on my own makeup to get ready for today.

When we got to my hair appointment, I was expecting a glamorous blonde lady that had a fabulous hairdo from the 70’s, but instead I was surprised by an older lady with long, silver hair and a colorful dress. Her face was kind and she smiled at us, when we came in. I smiled politely back.

“This is Anita, not only my hairdresser but my spirit animal, ” Maxwell said, bowing to her and she winked at him and winked at me, too.

Anita was pretty amazing – I thought Maxwell brought me here so that she could dye over my faded red ombre and I could look more presentable to the royals but she shook her head when I said that.

“I’m not here to make your hair more “presentable”. I’m here to make your hair stand out. You’re unique, your hair should be, too,” Anita smiled the sweetest smile. It was heartwarming. She did dye the rest of my hair dark brown but she made the ombre part ruby red. I definitely would look different than the noble girls. When she was done, she looked at me approvingly.

“You’re perfect!” she said and I was so grateful. It wasn’t a big gesture but I’ve always liked to stand out, even if just for a little bit.

“I love it!” Maxwell said when he saw me.

“Really?”

“Yeah, your hair looks like you – interesting and that’s what we want to do tonight, gain Cordonia’s interest so they are more invested you than the other girls,” Maxwell clapped his hands and I sighed. Of course, I had to compete with the other girls. I didn’t like it, I wasn’t any good at competitions but this was the one I really didn’t wasn’t ready to lose.

Maxwell took me to the boutique so I could choose my dress for the Masquerade and as I stepped in, I saw a petite woman, in her underwear, holding a dress.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t know anyone was here,” I said to the woman and she smiled at me.

“Oh! No worries, I didn’t really have an appointment, to be honest. I shouldn’t have been surprised that someone would walk in. I’m Hana, are you also getting ready for the Masquerade?” Hana asked. She was pretty calm for a woman who was standing in her underwear.

“I’m Ashley. Yeah, I have no clue what to wear, I don’t own anything that fancy, ” I smiled back at her.

“Let me get ready and I’ll show you some of my favorite dresses. I have no clue where the seamstress is, though,” she said and quickly put on a champagne dress with sparkles that accentuated her petite figure and put on her pink mask. She was probably one of the girls that was after Liam and a beauty, at that. If all the girls were like this, then I’m screwed, I thought to myself.

As we took a look around the exquisite dresses, a white dress with a slit caught my eye. It matched the sparkles on Hana’s dress, and I felt like it made my breasts look better, so when I put it on, I didn’t want to take it off. The fabric felt smooth against my skin and when I looked into the mirror, I knew this was THE dress.

“Now the final touch,” Hana put on the angel mask on me and gave me a thumbs up. This was it, I was ready. When the seamstress came back, she approved both of our dresses, took our names down and let us go.

“See you there!” Hana smiled and I smiled back. Well, this competition just got interesting…

Maxwell met me by the grand staircase, dressed in a black shirt and pants. Wasn’t he supposed to be dressed up aswell?

“You look fantastic!”

“Thanks,” I smiled at him.

“So when we go inside the ballroom, you’ll need to tell the herald your name and your title so that you can be announced,” he started.

“But I don’t have a title!”

“Exactly. But since my house is sponsoring you, you could be considered a “lady”,” he explained and I nodded. A lady. I could deal with that.

“Lady is good,” I agreed.

“So you will be known as Lady Ashley Fabiano,” Maxwell added and I nodded. That didn’t sound half as bad as I thought it would since I didn’t have a royal name. Well, if my parents knew that I was going to try to win a prince’s heart in the future, maybe they would have named me Catherine or Charlotte. Something more suiting for a royal life.

When the doors to the grand ballroom were thrown open, me and Maxwell entered slowly. I was holding onto him for dear life because everyone seemed to stare at us, silently.

“LORD MAXWELL BEAUMONT,” the herald announced and then looked at me, expectantly.

“Lady Ashley Fabiano,” I whispered to the herald and he nodded.

“AND LADY ASHLEY FABIANO,” the herald announced and we walked further into the ballroom. Maxwell went to talk to his brother, so I was left to my own devices. I was still too shy to walk up to anyone so I just hung around the fancy tables until I met Hana’s gaze. She was standing with some very tastefully dressed ladies and chatting happily. She cocked her head and mouthed “come here!” so I walked over slowly, trying not to look too eager.

“Hey, what do you think of the Masquerade?” she asked gleefully.

“It’s very .. fancy,” I replied with a smile.

“Actually it’s so refreshing to see a new face here, it can get a bit dull,” Hana took a sip of the champagne glass in her hands.

“Too many fancy and dull galas?”

“Too many to count,” Hana agreed. She looked to the other side of the room and her smile dropped.

“What is it?”

“Please excuse me, there is someone I need to urgently greet but let’s chat later, okay?” she quickly said and walked away in a rush.

“Ookay,” I said. With the corner of my eye I noticed Drake. He wasn’t in a suit but in his denim jacket again. He didn’t even dress up for a ball? He was really making a statement. Drake was moping around all alone so I walked over confidently. When he noticed me coming over, he nodded at me and stiffened.

“Good evening, my lady,” he said and it felt weird. This didn’t sound like him at all.

“Since when do you greet people with “my lady”?” I asked and he looked like he was shaken off a trance.

“Ashley? That’s YOU?”

“Don’t tell me that you didn’t recognize me,” I laughed and he nodded.

“I was caught off guard. Your hair… it’s different,” he smiled.

“Got it done today,” I smiled back.

“I.. I like it. You clean up well,” he nodded and I cracked a smile. He didn’t give out compliments easily so I knew I had to look good. Good enough to impress Liam. My Liam..

“But don’t let it get to your head. The nobles… they won’t accept you as one of their own just because you’re off frolicking with them to these fancy parties. You’re still a commoner,” he said the words and they sounded so sour. It sounded like he was speaking from experience.

“I believe you,” I replied quietly. I really did, I just wanted to know what happened to him that made him so sour. I felt bad that he was hurting.

“Good, that’s one of the smartest things you’ve said,” he nodded.

“Pardon me, but I absolutely must steal her away,” a voice behind us commanded. I turned around to see a red-haired woman in an absolutely perfect lilac gown and a matching mask. Interesting color choice, I thought. The woman pulled my arm and we walked away from Drake.

“Why haven’t I ever seen you here? Excuse me if I’m being too forward but I always notice the heralds announce a new name. I make it a point to know all of the ladies in court. I’m Lady Olivia Vanderwall Nevrakis, Dutchess of Lythikos,” she exclaimed. Olivia was demanding, that’s for sure. I was a bit taken aback by the forwardness. Were new faces really that rare here?

“Lady Ashley Fabiano, I can’t say that I’ve heard of a house you’re from, but let me give you some friendly advice, as you’re the new girl here. In Cordonia, it’s customary for you to kiss the King’s shoe when you curtsy him,” she smiled. I couldn’t tell if it was sneaky or genuine.

“Oh really?”

“That’s how you show deep respect and reverence for the monarchy. If I wasn’t here to warn you, you’d probably look so ridiculous, you’re so lucky I came for you when I did,” Olivia added. Something was very off about the way she spoke to me so I decided to ignore her advice. You couldn’t look ridiculous by not kissing anyone’s shoe, could you?

I spotted Maxwell walking towards us.

“Prince Liam’s finally here. Are you ready to see him?” he asked. I nodded. I was ready yesterday so when I saw him walking into the ballroom, I couldn’t believe it. There he was. My prince.


	4. Reunited

Liam smiled at everyone and took a quick glance around the room. His presence was warm, even I could feel it. He stood next to his father, King Constantine and they looked like polar opposites. Yes, they did look very similar but King Constantine looked rather… cold. He looked strict and didn’t have the sparkle in his eyes that Liam did. There was something truly magnetic about him.

“Okay, they will be ready for us in a minute. Are you ready to be officially introduced to the King of Cordonia?” Maxwell interrupted my thoughts. I looked at him and nodded. I was ready since my arrival.

“I’m ready,” I said it out loud.

“That’s good because the King has to see you as a good match for his son. First, we’ll introduce you to the king, then you will have a minute or two to chat with Liam,” Maxwell added but there was a tinge of nervousness in his voice. I knew he was worried about me but I did work in customer service and had to deal with very difficult clients, I knew this was going to be a breeze.

“Your Royal Highness, may I present Lady Ashley Fabiano?” Maxwell asked in a formal tone.

“Of course,” King Constantine answered. His voice was a lot lower than I expected. He gazed upon me and I dropped into a low curtsy. I didn’t take Olivia’s advice and based on the reaction of others, I instantly knew it was for the best.

“Your Highness,” I said, trying to sound confident.

“It’s a pleasure to see the suitor Lord Maxwell’s house has chosen. I hope you enjoy your time in Cordonia,” the King smiled at me.

“Thank you,” I replied, smiled back at him and let Maxwell escort me to the line where the ladies were lining up to see Liam. It felt a bit ridiculous that I had to line up to see him but if this was what it takes – I was ready.

“Lord Maxwell sounds a bit official, doesn’t it?” I teased Maxwell.

“You can refer to me as “His Lordship” if you want,” he laughed.

“I hope I can call you just Maxwell.”

“Just Maxwell it is. Now look sharp!” he answered as we moved towards Liam. He smiled at me and I felt like I wanted to melt again. I couldn’t believe that I finally got to talk to him. Maxwell stepped aside and I took a big step towards Liam.

“Hello. You must forgive me but I don’t think we have met before,” he said and I smiled the biggest grin. Really? He couldn’t recognize me behind this angel mask, too?

“Well, then tell me, Prince of Cordonia, how do you greet a mystery woman?” I said it in my seductive voice.

“With a kiss on the hand, I hope?” he took my hand in his and pressed it to his lips. His touch felt so good.

“Now, I believe I know every other lady here so your very presence is baffling me. Who are you, mystery woman? An adventurer, looking for your happiness in Cordonia? An aristocrat from another country? A journalist looking for her next story? What brings you here?” he asked enthusiastically.

“You’ve brought me here. Everyone’s here for you, my sweet Prince,” I smiled at him.

“In a manner of speaking. But you’re the only one with surprises here.”

“I’m surprised you can’t figure out who I am,” as I said the words, he looked into my eyes intently and then gasped.

“Ashley? Is it really you? But where’s Sarah? I never thought I’d see you again! I can’t believe it!” he smiled and I smiled back at him. I started to worry that the kiss in New York didn’t mean as much to him as it did to me and that everything I felt was just built up in my head.

“Sarah’s at home, safe and sound. I just… My family decided… I’m just happy to be here,” I stuttered with tears in my eyes and looked away from him because I was really glad to see him but it was hard without my family. I felt so exposed and vulnerable right now.

“It’s okay, I’m so glad you came here. You have no clue how much I missed you,” he touched my chin with his fingers and gently lifted it up so I could meet his gaze.

“So it’s alright with you that I’m here… vying for your hand?” I asked nervously.

“I was kinda hoping you would even though that sounded impossible at the time, knowing your life. I’m glad you’re here, this is the best surprise, Ashley. But how did you get here?” he asked softly and I couldn’t stop smiling at him.

“Well, you have my sister and Maxwell to blame. They conspired against my back so that Maxwell could sponsor me, he literally came to my house after my daughter’s birthday party and whisked me away so I could see you,” I smiled.

“Wow. And Sarah? How did she take the news?”

“Well, I did refuse Maxwell the first time because I didn’t want to miss out on Sarah’s birthday, so when he did come by after her birthday, she was excited for me. She encouraged me coming here and she’s all in all the best,” I sighed. It was good to get this off my chest.

“She does sound wonderful. Make sure she knows how grateful I am for this opportunity. It’s hard to believe that you’re even here!” he smiled at me once again and touched my hand. His guard cleared his throat.

“Are you feeling alright about this?” I asked as I ignored the guard and looked at him. He shook his head gently, as if disapproving of this but he didn’t say anything.

“Me? Are you really asking about me? This must be so hard for you,” Liam looked baffled.

“I do care about your feelings, too, you know.”

“That’s… that’s so encouraging to hear, thank you. I do know what I’ve gotten myself into, you know. The life of the Crown Prince of Cordonia hasn’t been an easy path and I know that my personal feelings can’t interfere with the fact that I have to choose the best suited queen for the role. But I am so glad you’re here, ” he smiled at me and that did make me feel a little bit better.

I felt a presence behind me and I knew that our time was up, sadly.

“So now we have to part ways, again…” I said sadly and he nodded.

“I hope you do save a dance for me,” Liam replied and this was my time to nod and sadly made way for the next noblewoman. As I slowly walked away, Maxwell joined me.

“Wow, I haven’t seen Liam so happy since we were in New York. You truly are the right choice for him!” he exclaimed.

“Maxwell, excitement will not be enough. I have to impress everyone in Cordonia. I mean, everyone. The other nobles, Cordonian citizens, Liam’s family. This will not be easy, ” I sighed, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

“Yes, this won’t be easy but that’s why I’m here. Me and my brother are here to help you to charm everyone just like you charmed Liam and us the first night we met you. You can do this, you have it in you, believe me,” he said with such enthusiasm it was hard not to believe him.

“I didn’t charm anyone,” I laughed.

“Uh-uh, you charmed all of us the first night. Even Drake but don’t tell him I said that, he will deny everything. He also volunteered to help me get you here, by the way.”

“Did he?” I was surprised at this reveal – Drake seemed not to like me very much and he was very snarky, so it seemed a bit unbelievable that he came voluntarily.

“Yeah, he said he wanted to make sure that you arrive safely and feel welcome, ” Maxwell nodded.

“And what a welcome THAT was. I guess, I never thought of him as the protective type, ” I smiled.

“Neither did I. But, listen, would you like to mingle with the other noble ladies? I know this doesn’t sound too promising because they are your direct competition but it wouldn’t hurt to have some allies here, would it?”

“No, I guess it wouldn’t hurt… I already met one girl, she seemed fairly nice,” I added.

Maxwell dramatically pointed his head to the door and made the “shoo” motion, so I walked through the intricate ballroom doors to outside of the castle and laughed. Hana, Olivia and the other noblewomen were standing around an ornate table with their drinks in hand, chatting.

“Ashley, you were awfully cozy with the Prince. You never told me you knew him!” Olivia berated me as soon as she saw the sight of me.

“Olivia, it’s really none of your business,” I replied nonchalantly.

“Oh, but it is my business! Everything with Prince Liam is my business. Everything. After all, I will be the queen once this silly competition is over,” she replied angrily and I smiled. It was a bit obvious that she was insecure and trying to bait me, so I just smiled back at her silently and it seemed to make her even more angry which, of course, was a bit fun for me. I didn’t like overconfident people and making them angry by not doing anything was fun.

“Alright, keep your secrets. Whatever time you spent with him outside court doesn’t even matter because, of course, you could keep his attention while you were alone. Liam couldn’t compare you to anyone. It’s a whole lot different in court, where each and everyone of us is better than you and have achieved so much more. We come from the finest families in Europe, we were trained our whole lives to grow up and marry a prince. You, an American young girl, don’t even stand a chance. There is no way we’re letting you steal him away from us, ” she said. I sighed. This was a sad attempt to make me feel bad about myself. This girl didn’t know that I have been through a lot already and that her insults were so meaningless to me. Lucky for me, I knew that I did have the approval of Liam and my family and to be honest, they were the only ones who mattered. Not this red haired drama queen trying to get under my skin.

“The only queen you will ever be is a drama queen,” I smiled at my comeback and it did seem to shake her for a bit. I didn’t want to be nasty, I really didn’t, but sometimes I felt like it was needed. Bullies only understand one language – their own.

“No, you don’t understand, Kiara here is fluent in ten languages, Penelope can trace her lineage back 600 years of royalty and even Hana has been training her whole life about the courtly graces of conversation and seduction,” Olivia said, gazing on me with fire in her eyes. She was pissed.

“Oh, if there is anyone who’s had the best track record with Liam, it’s you, Olivia. You have known him his entire life, you even grew up beside each other,” the girl named Penelope spoke up. Her thin, black hair were up in a fancy ponytail and she looked like a delicate flower. She smiled and walked closer to Olivia like a loyal puppy.

“It’s true and even before Liam’s brother Leo abdicated the throne, everyone in the palace knew that me and Liam would marry one day, so I have no intention in losing him to one of you harpies,” Olivia smiled.

“Wow, you really let her talk to you like this?” I looked at the other girls. Olivia was not only disrespectful but also mocking the other girls. That didn’t sit well with me.

“You shouldn’t take this close to heart, she is just stating the facts. There’s no use in getting all emotional over it,” Penelope nodded. Ugh. She WAS a loyal dog. I rolled my eyes.

“We all knew what would happen when coming here, Ashley. Didn’t you?” Kiara asked. She was beautiful, her skin practically was glowing in the moonlight and she smiled.

“To be honest, not really, ” I looked at Olivia.

“Well, I’ll make sure your life is a living hell. Maybe then you will learn your place,” she smiled back at me.

“I doubt it, ” I challenged her.

“Well, at least you have some backbone in you, unlike Hana who just sits there silently. I’m surprised she’s even here, after her ruined engagement,” Olivia stood there, triumphant. I stared at her in disbelief. What happened to her that she felt like she needed to be this way?

“Olivia!” Hana gasped and I shook my head.

“Oh, Hana, we all know your family keeps throwing you available bachelors as long as you can climb the social ladder. It’s not secret. But I don’t think Liam is going to accept “damaged goods”,” as she said the words, I wanted to punch her. So badly. I balled my hands into fists and looked at Hana. Oh, poor Hana. She was unprepared for the verbal attack.

“Excuse me,” she started walking away.

“Hana, you know, you don’t have to take this abuse. It’s not right,” I said sadly.

“But.. but it’s true. She didn’t lie.. I just.. need some alone time,” she walked away sadly and I felt so bad for her. I turned to Olivia.

“If she can’t handle the truth, how will she handle everything else in life?” Olivia asked and I was prepared to slap her, I really was. She deserved it but I didn’t want to cause a scene in my first social event, even if I really wanted to.

“How the hell is a grown woman acting like this? You look like you’re about 40 years old yet you act like a four year old. I wouldn’t trust you with childproof scissors, let alone a kingdom, ” and I walked away.

“I’m.. You can’t… I AM NOT 40 YEARS OLD! I’M NOT EVEN 30, HOW DARE YOU!” I heard her screaming behind me. At least I hurt her where it counts. I couldn’t believe she would do this.

I went in the ballroom to find Hana but instead, I found Drake, drinking his troubles away. Or so it seemed that way.

“Drake, are you okay?”

“Oh, yeah. The whiskey at these events is always top notch quality,” he replied, taking another sip.

“I’ll leave you to it, then,” and as I tried to walk away, his arm pulled me back.

“What’s wrong, Ashley?” he looked into my eyes and I could swear to God, it seemed like he did care.

“Olivia was being a total ass to Hana, so I wanted to make sure that she’s okay.”

“Seriously? Olivia is at it again? She’s really after Liam then…” he tried to say it nonchalantly but I felt like there was a history there.

“Yeah, Drake, we all are after him. In this competition,” I replied and it looked like he snapped out of it.

“Oh, yeah, right, you all love Liam, you all want to marry and be with him, blah blah blah. Hana’s probably in her room, at least that’s where I saw her heading, ” he replied slowly.

“Could you show me where it is?” I asked and he was hesitant but he gave up and lead me onto Hana’s door.

“Thanks, you’re a real softie, Drake,” I smiled at him and he shook his head but I saw a little smile creep up in the corners of his mouth. Did I just make Drake smile? I almost felt proud of myself.

Knock! Knock! Knock! I knocked on Hana’s door and when she opened it, with tears in her eyes, I immediately went in for a hug.

“What are you doing here, Ashley?” she asked and I just shook my head.

“I’m here to make sure you’re okay, what do you mean, what am I doing here?”

“But… but why would you care?”

“You are a good person, Hana,” I smiled at her and she smiled back at me.

“I know that it shouldn’t bother me so much and that you probably think that I’m such a drama queen for doing this,” she started and I stopped her.

“Your feelings are valid, Hana. You are allowed to feel emotions, you are allowed to express them. Hell, if Olivia went for me a few years ago like that, I probably would have done the same thing. It’s okay to be upset, Hana,” I hugged her again. I wanted her to feel alright.

“But what hurts the most that what Olivia said is true. Last year my parents did make a very advantageous match for me but a few weeks before the groom pulled out of the arrangement. Everything was handled quietly but it was still quite scandalous and my parents have been desperate to find a match for me. My parents basically threw me into this competition and I thought that Cordonia was so far away that no one would ever find out but even the rumors followed me here..” she finished her story and I felt even worse. Why would you even throw this into someone’s face?

“You shouldn’t be ashamed of a broken engagement. It wasn’t your fault and besides, it’s in the past. It’s alright, you know, ” I smiled, trying to be as encouraging as I could.

“I didn’t want Olivia telling everyone that.”

“Do you know why Olivia bullies you?”

“No.”

“It’s because she’s insecure about herself. She puts others down to make herself feel better. And you are the person to put down – you’re smart, funny, beautiful, everyone likes you. Of course, she’s bothered by it, ” I smiled.

“Everyones likes me? I sure doubt that,” Hana smiled weakly.

“Oh, c’mon Hana! You are a beauty. Have you seen the way Maxwell stares at you when you walk past him? He surely thinks so, too,” I winked at her. And it was true, I did see Maxwell steal a couple glances Hana’s way. Now, when I did think about it, they would make such a good couple.

“Maxwell? No way, I’ve been looking at him, I never noticed him look at me,” she blushed. I laughed.

“Believe me, you both are just the cutest!”

“Oh well, we’re supposed to be competing for Liam’s affections, ” Hana said and stood up.

“Shall we join everyone in the ballroom?” I asked and Hana nodded. When we both walked into the ballroom, Maxwell approached us.

“Hello lady Ashley! Lady Hana, what a pleasure!” Maxwell smiled when he saw her and blushed. It was hilarious watching them both interact with each other.

“Are you both ready to dance with the Prince?” Maxwell asked and pointed us towards Penelope who was just about to waltz with the Prince.

“Oh! You should totally cut in!” Hana suggested and Maxwell nodded.

“What about you, Hana?” I asked her and winked playfully at her and Maxwell.

“Oh, I can waltz right here with Maxwell, if it’s okay!” she said gleefully.

“Of course! I mean, yeah! I mean.. it would be my pleasure to waltz with you, Lady Hana!” he replied awkwardly and I chuckled.

As I walked slowly towards Liam, I had only one thought in my mind. I remembered the kiss we shared in New York and I needed to feel that way again.


	5. Save the Last Dance

“And that’s how my family acquired its fifth golden poodle statue…” I heard Penelope chuckle and smile at Liam. My Liam.

“I can relate. Don’t get me started on the queens antique goblet collection,” he replied with a polite smile on his face. I took this little bit of silence as an opportunity to come between them.

“Excuse me, may I cut in?” I cut the silence with my voice and saw Penelope’s annoyed look.

“If you must,” she sighed.

“I must,” I replied sternly, she nodded and walked away.

“Well, you handled that gracefully,” Liam smiled at me. It felt so good to have him all to myself, it felt like it was so right but at the same time, I knew I hurt Penelope. And even though, she was probably used to being bullied by Olivia, it made me feel bad for her. I didn’t want to be the one that makes her feel bad.

“To be honest, it didn’t feel like it.”

“Oh?”

“Even if it seemed graceful, I’m sure I hurt her feelings a lot. And I don’t like this feeling,” I replied and sighed. He smiled and we started waltzing. Well, he waltzed, I followed his every move carefully but in my opinion, I got better with every step I took.

“You really are something, Ashley,” he said with a slight smile on his face.

“Oh really?” I teased.

“I still can’t believe you’re here. I went home after New York, feeling like there is something missing. That I missed my chance to get to know you but here you are, with me, vying for me? You can’t believe how happy I am to know that you felt the same way,” Liam said quietly so only I could hear. I blushed. Oh, how I wished there was a way easier way for us to be together. But there wasn’t. So I had to do the only thing I could – compete for him.

“I’m just happy to actually see you,” I said and he smiled at me.

“Well, what do you say if we have a private conversation outside?” he suggested.

“Can we even do that? It’s your ball after all.”

“I don’t think they will miss me that much,” Liam replied and we slowly waltzed through the big glass door. I was surprised that no one even batted an eye. Well, Olivia probably did notice but that just seemed like a bonus, honestly.

“Now you can tell me everything,” Liam said quietly.

“Everything? Like what?”

“Are you okay? How did Sarah take the news, how it actually happened?” he asked eagerly and I was eager to tell him.

We talked a lot about Sarah and that made my heart warm, because he did sound like he was really interested in not only my well-being but also hers. It was so important to me and it felt important to him, too. He asked to see pictures of her and we both “aww”ed and laughed at her baby pictures and I told him about how both of us were dreaming about our own house filled with dogs.

“You know, the palace would look much better with a bunch of dogs running around,” Liam said with a sparkle in his eye.

“Oh really? How much is a bunch to you?”

“2-3?”

“Okay, that’ll do. A dog for each of us,” I laughed and he laughed with me. It was such a comforting laugh.

“Well, I hope Cordonia has treated you well so far,” he continued.

“Yes, Maxwell has been amazing. I haven’t met Bertrand yet but I don’t doubt he’ll be amazing, too,” I said excitedly.

“Ah, the Duke. I should warn you that he is almost nothing like Maxwell, he is much more serious, more into nobility and such. But because of him House Beaumont has an excellent reputation,” Liam added.

“Well then, I’ll have to charm him, too, ” I laughed.

“I’m sure you will. How do you like Cordonia so far? ” Liam asked after a pause.

“I love it. It’s beautiful, the pictures online did not give it justice. Everything’s bigger and better up close.”

“Pictures online?” he raised an eyebrow.

“Well, yeah.. I was kinda… stalking you? When you left for Cordonia, I was so heartbroken and me and my sister started reading Cordonian News regularly just to see you, Maxwell and Drake in the tabloids. “

“Oh. Did you read the articles, too?”

“Gosh no, we just looked at all the pictures. Well, my sister did find Maxwell somehow, so I guess she does the reading up on the Cordonian royalty?” we both laughed after my comment.

“I hope you do grow to love Cordonia even more because you know, as the queen, you’ll have to spend most of your time here,” Liam smiled.

“Yeah. I hope I’ll see you more often in the process,” I smiled back at him.

“There are a lot of great schools here to enroll Sarah into, you know,” he added and that made me laugh.

“I’ll worry about that a little bit later, since, you know, there’s a chance we actually don’t get married,” I replied. The thought of it made me sad but I didn’t want to get THAT ahead of myself.

“I understand. I’m also not making it any easier for you since we both know we do have feelings for each other and I can’t do anything about it yet. I have to make sure I pick the right person to lead the country beside me. My brother’s mother one day decided that she didn’t want to be a part of court, even though she admitted to my father that she did love him, so she ran, leaving him with Leo. Then my mother got assassinated… ” he quickly looked away but I did see tears forming in his eyes.

I put my hand on his shoulder, to comfort him but he pulled me into a big hug. I ran my fingers through his hair.

“It’s okay to feel sad of your mom’s passing. It’s okay,” I looked into his eyes and I wanted to kiss it all away… But I didn’t, it didn’t feel quite right.

“I’m sorry for that.. little outburst of emotion,” he finally said and took my hand. I shook my head.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. The things you feel are valid, you are allowed to feel them.”

“Thank you. You do remind me of my mother, though.”

“Oh?”

“You’re kind and comforting just like she was. I still feel lost without her even though I’ve lived most of my life without her. You make me feel as safe as she did,” he cracked the cutest little smiled.

“I’m glad,” I gave him a quick hug.

“The current queen is a very nice woman who does such a good job ruling alongside my father. She makes Cordonians and my father feel safe. That’s what I want… Our kingdom to feel safe in the hands of strong rulers. I don’t want another tragedy… Tell me, do you think you’re strong?” he continued talking as if he didn’t break down thinking about his mother just now. I knew he was a diplomat but that made me a little bit sad. I wanted him to be vulnerable. I wanted him to know that he could feel things and that he shouldn’t feel like the strong shoulder to everyone always. He was still human. I’m sure that Cordonians would also appreciate it. The one thing that always made me sad when thinking of royalty was how inhuman they seemed. They were always picture perfect, had perfect figures, perfect appearances, even though tragedies happened to them, they had to stay strong and be above their emotions. They weren’t given the time to grieve anything, they had to show their people how strong they were. No, this was not how I wanted to raise my daughter to be. Not at all.

“To be completely honest, no,” my voice was merely a whisper.

“Why don’t you think you are strong?”

“I’m an emotional mess, Liam. I cry hard, I laugh harder, I let myself feel sad, I let myself feel happy. I’m not always perfect, I don’t dress perfectly for every occasion, I don’t know everything and I feel like that’s okay. I know that I’m here to impress you, but I don’t want to do that, honestly. I don’t want you to think you have to impress me, I just wanted to see you, be with you, support and help you and have you do those same things back to me. I know I’m probably digging myself a grave here and that you might think I’m a worse candidate for queen than any of those other picture perfect noble women, but I don’t want to live a lie. I know what royal life entails but if you give me the chance, I’d like to make some changes, I’d like people to feel safe, to know they will be protected and that the feelings they have are valid,” I sighed loudly and at first, Liam seemed taken aback. He took a minute to process what I said.

“It astounds me that you don’t know your own strength,” he smiled.

“What?”

“You are brave, compassionate, aware of yourself and others, how can you think those are not qualities of strength? You are much more stronger than you know, Ashley Fabiano,” he took my hands in his and all I could do was smile like an idiot. I didn’t know what his response was going to be but this was so much better than I could’ve dreamed of.

He gave me a quick peck on the lips and it felt perfectly timed so I pecked him back.

“Shall we?” he took my hand and I nodded. We waltzed right back into the ballroom and it felt like a fairy tale. He held me so close to him and all I could think about was how good it would feel to make out with him in front of everyone here, right now. It would certainly create a scandalous scene.

We were swaying so close to each other and I knew that everyone was looking and if I did feel self conscious before, I didn’t. Not anymore.

“This is the last song of this Masquerade. Better make it count,” Liam winked at me.

“Will we have to say goodnight soon?”

“Unfortunately. “

“But what if the night didn’t have to end that way?” I smirked at him. While we were outside, I did catch a glimpse of a garden maze. And I knew it was probably going to be empty at this time of night.

“What are you suggesting?”

“You and me take a stroll down the garden maze?”

“Well, it won’t be much of a stroll,” Liam laughed.

“So are you in?” I asked mischievously.

“My bodyguards probably won’t be too happy about this,” he smiled at me.

“Then why are you smiling?”

“Because we both know that I’m going to the garden maze,” he replied and I could just kiss him right now. He was lovely.

After our waltz ended, everyone in the ballroom applauded, the King said a few words and the big crowd started going their own way. Honestly, everything was a big blur. I found myself standing alone in front of the garden maze and it was beautiful – you could see the work that was put into creating this. I heard footsteps behind me.

“You don’t seem like the person who appreciates gardening that much,” I heard Drake’s voice behind me. I turned around slowly and there he was – with the biggest smirk on his face, his hands in his pockets and his hair all messy.

“Did you enjoy the Masquerade? ” I smiled politely at him and he seemed even more annoyed. Sheesh, what was with him?

“Didn’t see most of it,” he shrugged.

“Why? Where were you?”

“I had other appointments to get to,” he walked past me in a hurry and I could see leaves in his hair.

“Say hi to your girlfriend from me!” I shouted behind him.

“Whatever, Fabiano. It’s over after today anyway,” he didn’t turn around like I expected him to but just kept walking away. That was strange. Or was it? Who was he referring to? Was he messing around with another girl from court? Did he have a girlfriend? I had so many questions but I knew that the only one with answers was Drake and he probably wouldn’t want to tell me. I was just some random girl to him and he wasn’t obligated to tell me his life story. I sighed.

I heard footsteps again and when I looked up, I was so delighted to see Liam.

“Hi stranger!” he embraced me. He took my hand in his and we slowly moved into the garden maze.

“It’s really beautiful!” I exclaimed happily.

“Thank you. It was my mother’s idea. She always loved gardening so she was responsible for the gardens. When I want to remember her, I always walk around here. Here I feel the most connected to her, ” he said quietly.

“I’m sure that she appreciates it, wherever she is, ” I smiled at the stars. They seemed to shine so bright now, just for us.

We walked in a comfortable silence for a while and it felt like we were an old married couple. It felt quite nice.

“You know, me and Drake used to play maze-tag around here,” Liam broke the silence.

“Maze-tag?”

“Well, it’s just like regular tag, only in this maze. Once I got so lost, so Drake had to call the bodyguards to find me,” he said with a big grin on his face.

“Aw, were you scared?”

“Not really, I was just so confused and walking in circles, ” he laughed so I laughed with him. The way he lit up while talking about his childhood was heartwarming.

“Hey Liam?”

“Yeah?” as he turned to look at me, I touched him gently on the shoulder.

“You’re it!” when I said the words I started sprinting away.

“Cheater!” I heard Liam shout behind me, giggling.

While I was running, I noticed how almost every single hedge was illuminated with fairy lights, it looked a bit magical and beautiful. I kept running as fast as I could and I felt myself get out of breath quickly so I walked ahead. I could see a tree branch so when I walked up to investigate, I felt someone embracing me. I tensed up but then I realized it was Liam.

“Gotcha!”

“How?” I widened my eyes. He should have been behind me!

“As the Prince, I do know some shortcuts,” he laughed. We both looked at each other for a while and I just went for it. I decided to kiss him again. He cupped my cheek and deepened the kiss. Our tongues were swirling around each other and all I could think was how much this would hurt if it didn’t work out. Liam stopped the kiss.

“We shouldn’t… It would be unfair to everyone,” he said and I nodded. It was unfair.

“I’m sorry, I’ll try to control myself…” I sighed. It started as fast as it ended. What was I thinking?

“No, it’s not your fault. It’s just… There’s a connection between us that so undeniable and it scares me a little, to be honest,” he said quietly.

“If I’m honest, me too. I’m so scared that we fall too hard and something happens,” I replied, being just as quiet as he was.

“I’ve never felt this way about anyone to be honest. I’ve never even really had relationships, so this is new and scary,” he said and I nodded. I could understand that. It is scary to get involved with a person to trust them with so much of you.

We walked back to the palace in silence and Liam took me to my room.

“Do you have any idea when will we see each other next?” I asked quickly, breaking our silence.

“Tomorrow definitely,” he nodded and we hugged goodbye. It didn’t feel like enough, not at all but I understood. When he closed the door, I just stood there. I didn’t want to move, I wanted him to burst through that door and just be with me..

When I heard a knock on the door, I opened it quickly, in case Liam was actually back but I was in for a surprise. Maxwell was standing there with his brother. He was about five years older than Maxwell but looked like he was 45 already. He had a brown vest on and he had the grumpiest look on his face. He looked even grumpier than Drake. He walked into my room with his nose up in the sky and a disgusted look on his face. Hey buddy, you’re not the prettiest sight, too, you know, I thought to myself.

“Hey Ashley! I thought it was time you finally met my brother,” Maxwell said happily. It was so weird to see them side by side – they looked so different, not only in looks but personality-wise, too.

I smiled at the always cheery Maxwell. He pretended not to notice the tension in the room which I was thankful for.

“This is the girl you’ve chosen to represent our house?” he said in a demanding voice. Boy, I did not like his tone.

“Yep. Nailed it, right? Ashley, this is my older brother Bertrand.” Maxwell replied with a smile.

“Nice to finally meet you, Bertrand,” I mustered the sweetest smile I could.

“The proper way to address a Duke is “Your Grace”, ” he said in response.

“I’m sorry, Your Grace!” I apologized immediately and he nodded.

“Well, at least you’re trainable!”

“I’m not a pet,” I started but Maxwell looked at me pleadingly.

“Ashley, I’m sorry, he didn’t mean it that way, he’s just stressed,” Maxwell said but the Duke seemed to get even more angry.

“Maxwell, a word?” he asked and both of them stepped outside. I knew they were talking about me but I didn’t want to make the situation worse so I just sat on my bed, waiting for them to be finished.

“Okay, Ashley, here’s the thing, we’re broke,” Maxwell said when both of them walked in.

“MAXWELL!” the Duke looked at him angrily.

“WHAT? It’s the truth! We are broke, our house is in financial ruin. And to save that, we wanted to sponsor you to get the Prince’s heart. We really want you to win,” Maxwell sat down beside me.

“Are you getting money if I win or what?”

“Well, not directly, you see. But we can get the house to it’s old glory if we sponsored the future queen of Cordonia! There’s lots of other different ways our house would benefit if you’d win,” Bertrand seemed to calm down. I nodded.

“There’s a derby event tomorrow and the press will be there, we will need you to charm them over! Do you feel like you could do that?” Maxwell asked and all I could do was nod. Again. I knew I had to do this, to prove not only to myself but to Liam and the Duke that I really did deserve to be here.


	6. Off to the Races!

We stayed up all night just to prep me for the upcoming derby. Of course, not my idea but I did understand Bertrand’s concerns. He didn’t know me and what I was capable of, I understood his doubts, especially, since he was raised to think nobility did mean something. I was ready to prove him wrong, that I was just as good as the other girls without the need to conform myself into this emotionless person but it wouldn’t happen overnight.

So he sat there lecturing me on how to use the right forks and knives, about the mystical past of Cordonia and some of its more prominent duchies.

“Okay, Bertrand, it’s 3 AM, we should let her rest for at least a few hours,” Maxwell said, finally, interrupting Bertand’s lecture. They both looked so very tired.

“You could lecture me in the morning, when Anita will do my hair,” I said, to make Bertrand feel better because he looked defeated.

“Would you really be willing to?”

“Of course. Anything for the house,” I said with a smile.

“Why would you help us?” he asked suspiciously and I rolled my eyes.

“Sorry, Bertrand gets paranoid when he hasn’t gotten his beauty sleep. C’mon!” Maxwell took Bertrand by the shoulders and started walking to the door.

“I must say, this wasn’t the most terrible way to pass the time,” I heard Bertrand say and I chuckled. He sounded sleep-deprived.

When they were finally out of my room, I exhaled loudly. It was only the second day in Cordonia but so much had happened that it felt more like weeks. Time did move differently in Cordonia. It felt strange, like I entered a completely different time zone here. I couldn’t sleep so I decided to walk to the palace’s kitchen for a glass of water. Maxwell and Bertrand did tell me that guests are usually encouraged not to go there but rather call through the landline in my room to get anything I wanted. I didn’t want to trouble anyone, especially not so late at night, so I walked down there alone, using my phone as a flashlight.

“We’re not in a scary movie, you know. You can turn off your flashlight,” a man’s voice echoed in front of me. It took me a second to realize it was Drake’s voice. He was standing beside a kitchen counter with several bottles in front of him. Alcohol, I assumed.

“Why are you here this late at night?” I asked quietly. He looked dishevelled. He wasn’t wearing his usual denim jacket but rather just a white t-shirt and jeans. I had grown to like the jean jacket so this was strange for me.

“Whiskey,” he held up a glass and pointed to another glass right beside it. I shook my head.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be okay? Alcohol is the best thing that has ever happened to me, ” when he said those words, I felt a chill up my spine. Something wasn’t right. Something didn’t feel right.

“Drake, are you okay?” I took a step closer to him and he retreated.

“Why wouldn’t I be okay? You go worry about your Liam and how to be the best queen of Cordonia,” he gestured.

I quickly poured myself a glass of water and went back to my room. He was drunk and I really didn’t like drunk people, so I wasn’t going to argue or to ask him to talk to me. Especially not when he was like this. We were strangers. Something was up but he was supposed to be Liam’s best friend, wasn’t he? I was determined to speak to Liam just to make sure that Drake really was okay. Maybe he was like this all the time. Maybe this was just Drake’s normal self. Drunk. But something did feel off about it.

I finally went to bed, after a few text messages back and forth with my sister – she sent me pictures of Sarah in the playground. It did make me sad that I wasn’t there for her right now but I knew that Rachel and Sarah were about to be on their summer breaks and they did absolutely adore each other.

A few minutes after waking up, Sarah and Rachel decided to call me, so we were having a videochat when Bertrand busted in.

“ASHLEY, DO YOU REMEMBER WHICH FORK IS …” he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw me holding my phone.

“BERTRAND! I told you to knock before…” Maxwell stopped and looked at me quizically.

“Say hi to Sarah and Rachel!” I said and turned my phone’s camera to the Beaumont brothers. Both of them looked a bit embarrassed. It was hilarious.

“Oh, I… Have some other business to attend to,” Bertrand said and almost ran to the door.

“Hey Sarah! Long time no see! Ignore Bertrand, he gets awkward around videochats,” Maxwell laughed.

“Why?” Sarah asked in her thinking voice.

“I don’t know, everytime he has interrupted me while I was on a videochat, he suddenly had other business to attend to,” Maxwell and Sarah shared a laugh.

“I think he’s shy,” Sarah said and I agreed.

“Maybe,” Maxwell agreed and all four of us chatted about the Masquerade.

“If mommy was dancing with the Prince, with whom were you dancing, Maxwell?” Sarah tilted her head and asked the question seriously.

“Oh, just with Hana..” he said awkwardly and started blushing.

“Doesn’t Hana want the Prince too, mommy?”

“I’m not so sure, babe. I think she might want someone else,” I winked at Maxwell and he looked surprised and shook his head.

“No, that couldn’t be!” he disagreed.

“Is Hana pretty?” Sarah’s little voice asked and I knew Maxwell was blushing.

“Of course, she’s gorgeous!” Maxwell replied and we all laughed.

“Okay guys, I have to get ready, wish me luck! The press is going to be there!”

“Oh, will we see you tomorrow on the Cordonian News?” Rachel finally joined the conversation.

“Oh, believe me, this special lady will be all over the news tonight, tomorrow and for the upcoming weeks!” Maxwell exclaimed.

“Maxwell!”

“Why?” both girls asked.

“Ashley will impress everyone, believe me. She’s the first commoner that is vying for the Prince’s hand in Cordonia’s history, you better believe that the press is going to be all over her!” Maxwell excitedly said and we all laughed. It was so hard to say goodbye to my girls, especially since New York felt like a lifetime ago. When we finally parted, Maxwell took me to Anita’s where Bertrand was already waiting. He nodded at us and didn’t say a word. Why was he like that?

When I got to the boutique, I saw Olivia and she seemed upset. Not her usual I-will-kill-everyone-in-my-way self, but she seemed sad.

“Is everything alright?” I asked and she turned around so quickly.

“None of your business, commoner,” she said in an icy tone.

“You don’t have to be like that,” I shook my head and went into my dressing room to change.

“Like what? Perfect?”

“Like a bitch. Okay, you hate me, that’s great to know, but I don’t hate you. I know there’s good in you there somewhere. If you’d stop being such a bitch, maybe the girls would stop being afraid of you and actually would be friends with you,” I said. I was still upset at her for blowing up on Hana but I wanted her to do better. I knew she could do better.

I exited the dressing room and looked at her up and down.

“Well you look nice,” I told her, putting on my big black hat.

“Thanks. You look charming,” she replied venomously. I smiled because that meant that something I said did get through to her. I quickly put on my lucky black necklace to accentuate the black & white bodycon dress I was wearing. It flattered my body in all the right areas.

“I have to go,” I heard Olivia say and she rushed out. I sighed. Did it really have to be like this?

As I walked out the room, a hand grabbed me and I yelled in shock.

“Ashley! Stop yelling, this is nonsense, we’re almost late for the derby! And Beaumonts are never late!” he said and pulled me into the white limo.

“But I’m a Fabiano!”

“Well let me rephrase then – Beaumonts AND Fabianos are never late! Understood?” he looked so scary and serious that all I could was nod in agreement.

When Maxwell entered the limo, I exhaled. It had gotten a bit awkward in here after Bertrand had scolded me so we just sat in silence, not really looking at each other.

“Sorry, I couldn’t find Drake,” he apologized.

“I’m sure the Walker boy can get to the derby without our help,” Bertrand replied, still annoyed, probably at me.

“But it’s strange, he asked for a ride…”

“Well, if he’s not in his room, there is not much you can do, is there? ” Bertrand was snappy.

“Okay, okay. Sheesh. But what about you Ashley? Are you ready to meet the press?” he asked and I nodded.

“Are you going to… you know… tell them about… your progeny?” Bertrand looked so awkward asking this, it almost made me chuckle. He could’ve said daughter but no.

“You mean my daughter?”

“Y-yes.”

“Honesty is the best policy isn’t it? I do want them to know I have a daughter, I don’t want to keep her as a secret, ” I said quietly.

“Not to mention, the public does appreciate honesty. And that makes you much more relatable,” Maxwell agreed. Bertrand sighed.

“If you must,” he said whilst tidying his pockets.

“I must,” I replied, trying to look him in the eyes but he was avoiding my gaze. It was so strange to me how Maxwell and Bertrand could be brothers – they were the polar opposites of each other.

“Don’t forget about the apples!” Bertrand reminded me.

“I know, I know. Apples are Cordonia’s biggest export and your national fruit!” I proudly said and Maxwell nodded.

When we finally arrived at the racetracks, there were so many people. All I could see were ladies and gentlemen wearing bright colors and big hats and reporters interviewing them. We got off the limo and I felt the fresh air. It felt like a sign that this was going to be a good day. Bertrand looked at me.

“Good thing you stand out,” he said and I nodded. I did like to stand out.

“Are you ready?” Maxwell whispered in my ear.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I whispered back and we slowly walked to the entrance where all the reporters were interviewing other ladies.

“Here you go,” Maxwell pointed at the reporters standing in line.

“What? Are you not coming with me?”

“No, we don’t need to be interviewed,” Bertrand said firmly.

“But… where do I go next? What do I do?”

“Don’t worry, you just have to find the pink tents, that’s where all of the ladies who are vying for Liam’s hand have to go,” Maxwell said assuringly and smiled.

“Maxwell, you’re the best,” I smiled and waved bye to him. This was it. This was my moment to actually get into Cordonia’s best graces.

I inhaled, exhaled and confidently walked to the direction of the press. When they saw me, they immediately swarmed towards me like bees go for honey. I couldn’t even see the faces of the interviewers, just their microphones.

“Over here! Donald Brine from the “Cordonian Broadcasting Center“. We’ve heard about the new lady on the social scene. What’s your name?” a man with a very deep voice asked.

“I’m Lady Ashley Fabiano from House Beaumont,” I answered as confidently as I could and smiled at him.

“Our viewers care about the real story. Tell us about yourself!”

“The real story is that I’m a single mother from New York but I won’t let that define me. I would like to think I’m funny and caring. A person who likes to love and to be loved,” I stopped myself before I turned this into a speech. I smiled at everyone and saw many shocked and interested faces. It wa hilarious – I did like shocking people. It was always such a treat to see their facial expressions change.

“Wow, I did not expect that. I’ve heard rumors that you are Prince Liam’s favorite. Could that be the reason? “

“Oh, I don’t think so, he’s yet to meet my wonderful daughter. But I do think it’s too early to make favorites, ” I smiled at him, hoping that what he had said was true. That I was Liam’s favorite. Especially after the kisses we shared…

Donald asked to take a picture of me, so I obliged and made a little wink. He did seem to appreciate that. An attractive woman in a suit stood next to Donald and lifted her hand.

“Lady Fabiano, Ana de Luca here on behalf of “Trend“, fashion and celebrity news magazine. As an outsider, what do you think of Cordonia?” her face turned from a smile to a more serious facial expression. I knew the question was important for everyone.

“Your country is so charming and beautiful, it felt like I landed on a little paradise when I got here,” I answered honestly. It truly felt like that at first – it is so beautiful.

“People will be happy to hear that. Now, Lady Fabiano, if you do marry the Prince, you’ll be our next queen. What qualities make you fit to rule Cordonia?” she asked seriously again.

“To be honest, with you, Ana, I’m responsible, I put others before myself, I’m brave, caring and I’d like to say that I’m also very honest, ” I smiled and she smiled back at me.

“Last question.. Hypothetically, how would you handle the news of low crop yields from the Cordonian apple orchards?”

“I would comfort the people, I know how important they are to your people. Then we’ll examine what we could do in such a crisis,” I said slowly to see Ana’s reaction. Her smile grew wide.

“Excellent! I’m glad to have someone as interesting as you in the running,” Ana smiled.

“You were great Lady Fabiano!” Donald exclaimed and I smiled at both of them and let the next lady have her interview. I tried to look for the pink tents but there were none in sight and too many hats blocking my view. I couldn’t find anyone I knew, so I just walked around until I got to a stable. Maybe someone there would know a way?

I stepped into the stable and it was empty. Well, almost empty, there was only one horse in the pen. I walked in and pet it slowly.

“Hello, is anyone human around here?” I shouted so that maybe someone would hear me but no one responded. It was just me and the horse and to be honest, it was more relaxing than listening to Olivia’s word vomit.

The door finally flew open and the first thing I saw was a jean jacket. Drake. Great. I rolled my eyes.

“Why are you always in the wrong place at the wrong time?” he asked and I ignored him for a full minute.

“What are you even doing here?” I asked, still petting the horse that did seem to take a liking to me.

Drake ran his fingers through his hair.

“Well, to be honest, Liam sent me to look after you,” he sighed finally.

“To babysit me?” I felt my insides flare up. He did WHAT?

“No, not really. Just to make sure you got to the right place in time,” he quietly responded.

“Did other girls get this treatment, too?” I felt myself getting angrier. Who did he think I was? A child that couldn’t follow directions?

“No, but they’ve all been here before you and pretty much know their way around,” Drake tried to calm me down and slowly but surely, I felt calm again. It wasn’t a good feeling but I could understand it, from his point of view. He was protecting me.

“So where should I go to now?” I asked calmly.

“To the white tents, next to the entrance where your adoring fans await.”

“Are you not coming with me?”

“Nope, I have other business to attend to,” he smirked.

“Like what?” I put one hand on my hip, demanding answers.

“Me and Liam usually get together in his private tent, drink beer, watch the horses. It’s amazing and the press doesn’t bother us at all,” he smiled excitedly.

“It’s decided, I’m coming with you,” I smiled at him.

“What? No, you wouldn’t be allowed!”

“Why?”

“Well… because… I just… Alright, come then, I don’t even care!” he threw his arms in the air like a toddler but still waited on me to get out of the stable with him. It was a comfortable silence between us – it felt nice not having to talk. When we finally got next to the private tent, Drake gave me his pass.

“Don’t lose it. I’m getting some beer, you go,” he said and waved me away. At the entrance, a bodyguard examined my pass and let me in. There he was. Liam – sitting on a bench, watching the races. He was so deep in thought, it was cute. I put my hands over his eyes and felt him tense up.

“Guess who?” I felt him relax at the sound of my voice and he laughed.

“How did you get here?” he asked as he looked at me.

“I have my ways,” I whispered mysteriously.

“I’ll take a wild guess – Drake?”

“Oh, totally. My persistance and Drake are a great teammates!” I smiled and he laughed.

“At least you’re here, ” he stepped closer to me and we just gazed at each other for a bit.

“Did you really make Drake babysit me?” I bit my lip nervously.

“Yes and no. I did ask him to look out for you but I didn’t see it as babysitting, it’s just that I wanted to keep you safe.”

“Safe?”

“I can’t stop thinking about you, you remind me so much of my mother so all I want to do is to keep you safe. Keep you with me. Even the press knowss you’re my favorite,” as he said the words, I felt my cheeks go red. Was he really smooth or was I just hopelessly attracted to him?

“Guys, it’s starting!” Drake interrupted the intimate moment and I was grateful for it. We both knew we were moving a bit too fast but we couldn’t help it.

“Did I interrupt something?” Drake asked nervously.

“Oh no, we’re always happy to see you, Drake,” I smiled at him.

“You are?” he gave each of a cup of beer and both of the boys started talking about betting on the horses. I tuned them out and just looked at the magnificent creatures. They were such beauties and we made them race. For what? Our own pleasure? Our own entertainment? Why? Cheers all around me interrupted my thoughts and when I turned around Drake and Liam were taking off their shirts.

“What’s happening?” I gasped.

“Nothing special, me and Drake made a bet and both of our horses lost,” Liam replied so calmly like it was such a normal thing, a day-to-day occurance.

“Do you do this everytime?”

“Only when we lose a bit, Fabiano,” Drake replied and already had started doing his pushups.

They both got to 20 and then put their shirts back on.

“Well, that was impressive,” I smiled at both of them.

“You wouldn’t say that if you knew how much Liam here has lost,” Drake laughed and Liam joined in. They really did seem like best friends. It was adorable. I didn’t get to see many male friendships but this was one of the best I’d seen. Like they were brothers but more than that. True best friends.

“I guess I should go prepare for the Lawn party,” Liam said and Drake quickly stepped out of the tent. Probably, to give us some privacy.

“Lawn party?”

“After the derby, we have a Lawn party to celebrate.”

“Wow, you Cordonians do celebrate a lot,” I smiled and made Liam laugh. His laugh was always so hearty, I loved listening to it.

He leaned in, took my cheek and kissed me. Passionately, fierce. When we finally pulled away, Drake walked in.

“I’ll walk you to your tent, okay?” he asked and I nodded. I waved goodbye to Liam awkwardly and he smiled.

“Are we okay, Fabiano?” Drake asked quietly as we walked towards the white tent. I nodded.

“Of course. Why?”

“You were upset earlier and I was a dick to you in the kitchen last night… Not my proudest moment, believe me,” he really sounded like he was sorry.

“I’m sorry, I just thought that both of you thought of me as a child,” I smiled weakly at him.

“Oh BELIEVE ME, none of us think of you as a child,” he winked and that did make me laugh. It looked so awkward, like it wasn’t natural to him.

Olivia was the first one to see both of us and she looked intently at me AND Drake.

“What?” I asked her as she was silent. I waited for an insult or something.

“Nothing,” she crossed her arms.

“I, uh, have to go. See you at the Lawn party!” Drake said and quickly left. There was certainly a vibe here.

Was something up with Olivia and Drake?

Were they something more than just Liam’s childhood friends?

Why was I so nosy? I felt the need to solve this mystery…


	7. Queen of Hearts

I eyed both of them carefully.

“What are you staring at?” Olivia snapped at me. I looked her up and down – she didn’t look like her normal self. Her dress wasn’t fierce, it was a pale green and frankly, didn’t look too good on her. It was just too … simple for her. Something was up, I was sure of that.

“You look so… pale,” I couldn’t find the right words to describe her so that she wouldn’t get truly offended.

“Ugh!” she walked away aggressively.

“Is Olivia okay?” Hana sneaked up on me.

“I’m not sure but I do think that there’s a thing between her and Drake,” I said confidently. I was so sure of that.

“Oh! That would be a scandal.. What makes you so sure?” Hana bit her lip nervously.

“I don’t have concrete evidence yet but they both act so strange around each other,” I whispered.

“Oh.”

“Similarly to you and Maxwell. But you and Maxwell are adorable together, ” I winked at her, knowing I made her blush.

“I mean, we both know who the Prince is going to choose… and I don’t really have THAT connection with him, you know?” she smiled at me and I smiled back.

“But I know a person who has THAT connection with you,” I winked again and she just blushed. I kept teasing her and she kept laughing. It felt nice, it reminded me of all the times me and Rachel bonded by teasing each other over boys. I really missed that right now and Hana was the perfect person to tease.

“Hey girls! Did you start having fun without me?” Maxwell walked up behind us and put his arms around both of us. But all three of us knew that he only did that so he could be closer to Hana.

“Sure did,” I smiled at them. Maxwell’s eyes beamed when he looked at Hana. He always seemed so upbeat and friendly but when he was with her, he seemed extra upbeat and extra friendly.

“Do we have to go to the Lawn Party now?” Hana asked.

“Yeah. They’re all waiting for us,” Maxwell nodded.

“What exactly happens at the Lawn Party?”

“It’s a literal tea party we get to have with the Queen present, of course. She has to talk to all of the ladies vying for the Prince and we PARTYYY, ” Maxwell put his hands up and shook them. We all laughed.

“Oh, that sounds way more fun than the derby! When I hosted my own tea parties, they didn’t sound as fun,” Hana said quietly.

“You hosted tea parties? I can see that,” Maxwell smiled.

“Well, not with actual humans… I had Mr Sock, Miss Snickerdoodle and Princess Lemon Curd,” she sighed.

“Was Princess Lemon Curd chatty?”

“You both are far better company,” Hana smiled weakly at us. There was still some hurt under all that and it was starting to pour out little by little.

“I’m so sorry Hana!” Maxwell hugged her by the shoulder and she smiled at us.

“Okay, sad times are over, now let’s go to that Lawn Party!” she exclaimed and so we did.

“To the LAWN PARTY!” we all shouted as we entered the limo that was parked almost right in front of us.

“Maxwell, I need to.. Oh! Lady Hana Lee! What a pleasure to finally meet you!” Bertrand changed his facial expressions so fast when he saw her and shook her hand.

“Nice to see you too, Bertrand. I’ve heard a lot of things about you,” when Hana spoke, it seemed like she turned into this different Hana. Political Hana. She was always nice and polite but now it looked like she was ready to be a political candidate. Her back was straightened, she stared right at Bertrand when speaking to him, smiled at the appropriate times. You really could see the influence her parents had on her over the years, she really DID train for this. I couldn’t wrap this around my head – me a commoner vying for the Prince at the same time that my friend, who is trained in all of these things, is vying for him also. How could I ever compete? She knew everything there was to know whilst this was the first time I was really out of my comfort zone. Olivia’s words couldn’t hurt me because she was a bully but Hana… If he ever chose Hana, I could see it. She was beautiful with her reddish brown hair, sparkly brown eyes, she was petite and always dressed to impress. Her family was influential, she was a socialite and she loved these things. How could I even compare myself to her?

Maxwell turned to me and pinched me.

“Earth to Ashley!”

“What?” I shook my head, as if I was waking up.

“Is everything okay?” Hana turned to me and looked at me innocently. And I knew that my insecurities were my fault and mine alone – she didn’t even want the Prince, she wanted Maxwell. But somehow that made it even worse because she didn’t even want him and it could work out in her favor. And I wanted Liam so so so much.

I nodded in response to Hana. What was with me? Why were my insecurities taking over?

“Are you really feeling well? You’re all pale,” Maxwell seemed worried and that somehow annoyed me even more.

“I’m alright,” I answered with a smile and the rest of the ride went by in an awkward silence.

When we finally stepped out of the limo, I felt gush of the wind. It relaxed me. And took my worries away. I was good enough. I am good enough, I whispered to myself.

I looked at the big podium before us and gasped. Bertrand did tell me before that this park was specifically created to hold all of the Cordonian royal events but the stories didn’t do it justice. It was magnificent. It was covered in white outdoor tents, white tables and servants walking around passing food to everyone. It reminded me more of a wedding than a tea party, honestly. I started to feel a bit out of place again but I took a big breath and repeated my mantra. I am good enough.

“You both should go over there, the Queen is about to make her grand entrance, ” Maxwell gestured to where Olivia was standing. She looked angrily at me.

“Hi bestie!” I whispered as I walked behind her, fully knowing that will make her even more angry.

“Sorry Hana,” I whispered to Hana.

“About what?”

“For being so awkward in the limo.. I was just feeling insecure, you know. I’m this single mother from New York and then there’s you, a perfect socialite who knows how to speak to people properly and even Bertrand shuts up in front of you because he values your status much more than he values me as a human,” I sighed. I felt Hana’s arms hug me from behind.

“Seriously? You’re jealous of me? The Prince has eyes for you and only you, I wish you could see that. You were a teenage mom, you actually birthed a human being, you listen to people, you’re compassionate, you care so much. Who cares that you aren’t of royal blood? I certainly don’t. And Bertrand did have a girlfriend who wasn’t a royal, so I’m not so sure he actually thinks that. It’s just this big facade for him. But you shouldn’t doubt yourself. You are amazing!” as Hana was praising me, I couldn’t do anything else but smile like an idiot. How was I so lucky to have met her?

“Okay, okay. But Bertrand had a girlfiend? When? What? Not royal? Who?” it peaked my interest.

“It was all over the press, they were so in love, I don’t know what happened but they did seem like they were in love. It was Savannah, Drake’s sister,” Hana whispered in my ear.

“What? He has a sister?” I exclaimed. I was shocked. By the way he was acting, I was sure he was an only child.

“Can you shut up and read the Cordonian News for your gossip like everyone else does in this country? Here comes the Queen!” Olivia scolded us and put her finger on her lips to shush us.

Me and Hana exchanged a look and smiled but we did stay silent because we were eager to hear what the Queen was going to say. She walked slowly to the microphone that was in the centre. The press gathered all around her to take pictures, videos and to record her voice themselves.

“Greetings Cordonia! This party is thrown in an honor to you, so you could get to know our royals a lot better. I hope you do find our newest additions as good as the one’s that came before them,” the Queen started talking and it seemed like she was looking straight into my eyes. I shook my head, I was dreaming. The Queen probably didn’t even notice me, around all these people. Suddenly a girl appeared next to the Queen. She had icy blond hair up in a bun and to be honest, really looked like a Barbie doll. Her face looked like it was sculpted, everything was so perfect. She didn’t even have a hair out of place.

“What is Madeleine doing right beside the Queen?” I heard Olivia gasp.

“What does this mean?” I whispered to Olivia.

“That we’re in big trouble, I think she’s going to announce her being a suitor,” Olivia said angrily behind her teeth.

“Madeleine? Then we don’t stand a chance,” Penelope saddened.

“Why?” I didn’t understand. A girl was joining the competition – so what? What was so special about her?

“Of course, you wouldn’t know,” Olivia rolled her eyes at me.

“What?” I enquired and Hana smiled assuringly at me.

“It’s nothing. The other girls are just afraid, as am I that Madeleine will be picked because she won the previous engagement,” she said quietly.

“Wha-? Oh, so she was engaged to Prince Leo?”

“Before he abdicated, yes. Countess Madeleine of Fydelia actually won the competition and was picked by Prince Leo. But then he suddenly abdicated the throne, leaving it to Prince Liam to salvage his brother’s mistakes and the engagement was void. The press did find out why that happened, though,” Olivia continued the story and sounded very intriguing that I had to find out more. Especially since this concerned Liam and his family.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know the exact details but Leo was spotted on a cruise ship with a mysterious woman who had a pretty big engagement ring on her finger. People close to me told me that she was expecting a child with him, too. A commoner. American,” Olivia now glared at me.

“Did you find out who the mysterious woman is, Olivia?” Penelope asked with enthusiasm.

“Of course I did but I’m not telling, it’s not my secret to tell,” Olivia sighed. The Queen was still talking about Cordonian pride and I noticed Madeleine staring right at me. The stare was ice cold or so I thought. I didn’t see any other expression of hers, so I didn’t have anything to compare her to. But she was definitely staring.

“Madeleine is sure a cunning one so I suggest to be careful around her, she knows how to win. She’s in it to win it… and she’s probably even more determined because of what happened with Leo,” Olivia whispered to us. She probably wasn’t as bad as Olivia tried to make her out to be.

“And I’d like us all to have a warm welcome to the last but not least lady joining the competition – Countess Madeleine of Fydelia!” the Queen said and the crowd roared.

“Justice for Madeleine!” a lady from the stands shouted.

“Wow, she is truly loved, isn’t she?” I whispered to Hana.

“I wouldn’t say loved. More like respected. She earned Cordonia’s respect while working with her father on Cordonia’s security and she is a great PR person,” Hana nodded.

“And we all know that Hana is this year’s Cordonia’s sweetheart,” Olivia said coldly and I stared at her. Wow, jealous much?

The Queen announced that she was going to approach each lady individually and started walking down the podium. My heart was racing. This was it. The moment of truth – will his family like me? Will they support an American teenage mother competing for their precious Prince’s heart? I felt dizzy the closer she came and thoughts came rushing in my head. Inhale, exhale, I told myself.

“Lady Ashley?” the Queen’s voice interrupted my inner thoughts. I suddenly realized that the moment was here.

“Your Majesty,” I courtsied and she nodded slowly.

She looked much older up close, wiser.

“I’ve heard so many things about you, Lady Ashley,” she said with a smile on her face.

“All good I hope?” I smiled back.

“Most things are really good. Some do worry me. For example, as I found out from the press this evening, you are a mother already. So the basic things of a ruler are there already – the responsibilities, the worries, facing the unknown from the start. But you surely don’t intend to make your daughter the heir of Cordonia? I don’t say that with ill intentions but the facts are there – she wasn’t born by a man of Cordonia and she isn’t royal. Would you even be interested in having more children so Cordonia could have a rightful heir?” she asked so calmly and I felt like she punched my gut. I knew that these types of questions were going to happen sooner or later but I really didn’t expect one to start rolling in now – especially not from the Queen herself. Especially not publicly. There were people looking at us, some just smiling, some staring. If anyone of them could lipread well, they’d know the whole conversation.

“It’s a little soon to be talking about that, isn’t it? ”

“Not really. I understand your reluctance but I do want an answer if you can muster one. This might not be relevant to you right now but it’s very important for us, the royal family. We should be informed of such things,” she stared into my eyes.

“Did you ask the other girls the same questions?” I asked, getting annoyed.

“Why would I? I know that their intention is to marry a prince and procreate, what’s there to think about?” she asked confidently.

I was taken aback a little but because it sounded so old fashioned. I knew that monarchies were built on traditions but I really didn’t think that this was her business.

“I would like to give my daughter the title of Princess if it’s possible but I wouldn’t want her to be the heir of Cordonia, at least not now. She wouldn’t be ready for such responsibilites right now as her priorities are attending school. And yes, I would love to have more children with Liam, if he wanted to,” I smiled at her as I answered her questions. It didn’t feel fair being interrogated by the Queen like this but I knew I wouldn’t win her over if I wouldn’t be cooperating.

“Call me impressed. This was good insight into who you are. And you didn’t crack under pressure but began questioning things – a very good quality. You passed, ” the Queen smiled.

“I passed?” I was confused. Was this a test?

“I just tested you a little. You know how to stand up for yourself and your loved ones, that’s a very good quality to have. Thank you, Ashley,” she nodded and slowly walked back to the podium to finish her speech. I stood there and widened my eyes.

Was I really dreaming or was the Queen testing me and I passed? I couldn’t believe it. I passed!

The Queen announced the start of the Lawn Party and everyone scattered all around. Bertrand and Maxwell walked right up to me.

“So how was it?” they both asked simultaneously.

“She said she was testing me a little and I passed!” I shouted with excitement.

“Awesome!” Maxwell gave me a high five but Bertrand gave me a little nod.

“That’s VERY good. The Queen only tests the ladies that she thinks could persevere. Very good, Ashley. Good indeed,” he kept nodding.

“Now we have some deserved party time!” Maxwell busted out a move and started dancing. I joined in right behind him and we both urged Bertrand to do the same.

“I am the Duke! I must look dignified! I can’t waste my time moving my arms around. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must start preperations for next week!” he walked away so quickly.

“What’s with him? And what’s next week?” I asked Maxwell when we finally stopped our impromptu dance session.

“Oh you know, he’s just worried sick about next week’s tour. Bertrand just being Bertrand. Always the serious. That’s why I always lighten the mood, that’s how I don’t let the pressure get to me,” he replied.

“So how are things with Hana?” I lifted my eyebrows to tease him.

“Oh! Well… she’s nice. Super nice. Trying to win Liam’s heart, no doubt,” Maxwell blushed.

“I do doubt that,” I patted his shoulder.

“You do? But they’re like a perfect match. Both were trained for his and he’s a prince… and I’m just the Duke’s brother and our house is broke, as you probably can remember. I can’t offer her the same luxuries as Liam could and would…” he sighed.

“Maxwell, do you really think she’s into him?”

“No.. But what can I offer a girl like that? Don’t get me wrong, I do want you to win and I know you both have strong feelings for one another but sometimes I just feel… inadequate,” he sighed.

“Inadequate?”

“As a brother, as a part of the Beaumont House… I don’t think I’m a very good royal. People expect things from me and I.. I just make jokes,” he sighed.

“People expect you to make jokes you know,” I said comfortingly.

“They do?”

“Yes, as you said before, that is what you do best. You lighten the mood and that stands for a lot. I can’t even tell you how thankful I am to have you in my life right now. I feel like you really are my brother and you know when I’m down so then you make a silly joke or comment and I don’t feel as bad… You’re a really great guy Maxwell and I don’t think Hana cares a lot about how much you can offer her as long as you’re there for her and you make her laugh from time to time. Can you do that?” we both looked at each other and he nodded.

“Ashley, you are the mom friend I’ve always needed,” he laughed and it felt good. I liked the feeling of being a mom and actually be a mom friend, it had a nice ring to it.

I sent Maxwell to chase after Hana while looking for some other familiar faces. It was easy to get lost in the crowd but Drake’s denim jacket saved me.

“Hey strangers!” I walked behind Liam and Drake who were in deep conversations on the bench.

“Hey!” both of them replied at the same time.

“Drake, do you ever wear anything else besides this jacket?” I laughed.

“Yeah, the 9 other denim jackets I own!” he replied.

“Wait wha-?”

“You seriously don’t think I walk around the same jacket all the time?” he and Liam laughed.

“Well, I suspected that you took great care of it!”

“Yeah, by owning 9 more of these babies,” Drake pointed at his jacket.

“Ookay, the mystery is solved! Now, what happens next week?” I turned to Liam.

“Oh, nobody told you?” Liam looked surprised.

“This is going to be fun,” Drake added.

“Next week the royal court is going for a social event in Lythikos, get ready for some cold weather!” Liam looked at me.

“Wait… are you saying..?”

“Yeah, we’re going to visit Olivia in her house. In the snow. Cold weather. Yay,” Drake said and sighed.

I rolled my eyes. Olivia was going to make me miserable there, I could just feel it.

“But it’s summer,” I frowned.

“Not where we’re going,” Liam looked sympathetically at me and took my hand. I sighed. Well, I couldn’t exactly say no. I heard my phone ring in my tiny clutch. Rachel was calling. Rachel knew this was an important event so I knew she wouldn’t call if there wasn’t a need for it.

“Rachel?”

“Oh my gosh, Ashley! I’m so scared. Paul came by the house and he said he wants to see Sarah. I told him to take it up with you but he said that he’s the father so he can do whatever he wants. I didn’t let him in, he didn’t force his way in but still..I’m so scared… He sounded so angry, he said he would come back and take her by force if he has to,” Rachel sounded exhausted. I felt so bad for her but the anger sat in. How dare he? And why now? Why did he choose the only time I wasn’t with my daughter?

“Okay, Rach, I need you to breathe. Are the doors locked? Is Sarah okay, did she see or hear him?” I started to feel dizzy and lightheaded.

“Is everything okay?” Liam mouthed to me. He looked worried. He sat me down on the bench where he was sitting before.

I shook my head. Everything was not okay. Everything was totally not okay.

“No, Sarah is in the store with dad,” Rachel was on the verge of tears, I could hear it.

“I’ll arrange something and I’ll fly to New York as soon as I can, okay?” I had to see family and make sure they are okay. Especially Sarah. I would do anything to make sure that she’s okay. Even drop out the competition…

“But Ash..”

“I’ll call you as soon as I know more!” I hung up and looked at both of the boys.

I told them the situation – that Paul came by unannounced and tried to get into the house while Rachel was there and that I had to get home as fast as I could.

“I don’t think you should leave,” Liam said softly and I looked into his eyes. Oh, Liam.

“I have to protect them, if he comes back and tries something again!”

“And how exactly you, a tiny young woman can accomplish that?” Drake sighed.

“I hate to admit this, but Drake’s right.. We know you want to protect your girls so.. we could fly them out here? ” Liam asked pleadingly.

“Fly them out here?” I didn’t even think of that.

“Of course. They would be protected by the best bodyguards here and I doubt Paul would know to look for them in Cordonia. Do you have full custody over Sarah?” Liam asked softly and at this moment I was so thankful to have him in my life.

“Yes. He isn’t even mentioned in the birth certificate,” I nodded. Liam hugged me.

“Shh, it’s going to be okay. Call them now and I’ll arrange for the flight as early as today,” he whispered in my ear. He was a literal angel sent from the sky, I just couldn’t believe it.

“Today?”

“The sooner the better. They would be coming here eventually anyway, this just makes everything easier, doesn’t it?” Liam looked into my eyes and I nodded. He hugged me again. Drake was sitting on the bench, looking at us. He mouthed: “Paul sucks” when he noticed me looking at him and I smiled. Paul really did suck.


	8. Fire and Ice

When everything was arranged, I was waiting for the girls at the airport with Liam and Drake. Both of them wanted to see my girls safe and I was so grateful that both of them took the situation so seriously. Liam even freed his schedule so that he could dedicate this evening for this and I couldn’t even put it into words how grateful I was for this. He could’ve just let me go home and this would all be easier on all of us but.. he didn’t. And I was so glad he didn’t.

The airport was cold and empty, it looked a bit creepy but I couldn’t even focus on that for too long because Liam was holding my hand and his warmth was so distracting. All I wanted was to be kissed by him right here and right now but we were with Drake and that would cause a lot of awkwardness. And I wasn’t a big fan of PDA anyway.

”They’re finally here!” Drake said and pointed to the big airplane that was just landing in our line of vision. My heart jumped. My girls! My beautiful, lovely girls!

It seemed like an eternity before the airplane’s door opened and I could see their lovely little heads peaking out. I ran to them as fast as I could. When Sarah was finally in my hands, all I could do was kiss her cute face.

“I missed you!” I whispered into her ear and she giggled.

“Mommy, I missed you sooo much! I love you!” she replied, still giggling. Oh, how I missed her. Even though I didn’t see her for only a couple of days, these were the longest days I’ve ever experienced. It was the longest we’ve even been apart and I was glad that it was over.

Rachel hugged me tightly.

“Thank you for taking me with you,” she whispered.

“I couldn’t leave you, not now, not ever,” I smiled at her. I knew she was thankful and I was, too. For this opportunity that she actually helped me get and that we could be here, together.

We walked slowly back to the airport, to greet Liam and Drake when Sarah ran up to Liam.

“Are you really the Prince?” she asked him and he laughed.

“Yes, I am Prince Liam. And you are?” he outstreched his hand for her to shake.

“I’m Princess Sarah… well… hopefully princess Sarah!” she said with a grin on her face and we all laughed. She was adorable.

“Well your name does mean “princess” in Arabic, so you can introduce yourself as Princess, you know,” Rachel added and Sarah nodded.

“Of course! I am Princess Sarah! Nice to meet you all!” she did a little wave and I couldn’t help but laugh. Drake waved back at her and she nodded.

When all of the introductions were made, we quickly got into the black limo that was waiting for us already.

“Wait, wait, wait! Where is our stuff?” Sarah asked when we got in.

“I’ve entrusted the staff of the palace to take it to your rooms,” Liam said and Sarah gasped. She was so excited to live in a real life palace and I was excited to share the experience with her.

Liam arranged everything so fast, it made me realize how much power was actually at his disposal. He was a very powerful man and even though I knew it in my heart that he wouldn’t use it to destroy anyone and that Liam was a kindhearted soul, it was a bit scary. Mostly, because I realized that not many kindhearted people were in his position because they got removed from it. There were people who wanted his power. Liam already told me that the kingdom did have it’s fair share of enemies but with Sarah here, everything was real. Until this moment, I lived in a distant place, basically, in a castle, like a princess, with every whim taken care of and flirting with my dream guy. It was a dream – it was a dream that most people wouldn’t even get to experience but here I was. Experiencing it. But with Sarah here, I realized this wasn’t a dream. If Liam did pick me to be his queen – I would have to stay here. Be a queen to the people of Cordonia. Raise Sarah here. Be present. It overwhelmed me a bit.

I felt tiny fingers squeezing mine. And it was the best feeling.

“I love you,” she said whispered in my ear.

“I love you so much more,” I whispered back.

“Is everything okay? You had that worried look again,” she stared at me.

“Everything’s great. You’re finally here, I can’t even believe it!” I said and pulled her into a hug. Rachel seemed in her comfort zone, she was mingling with the Prince and Drake. It made me smile – Rachel was remarkable, she could find her place amongst everyone. The one person I didn’t have to worry about was her, she knew how to get what she wants and she actively pursued it. I sometimes envied her for that.

When we finally got into the palace, I had to listen to all the “ooh’s” and “aah’s” until we got into my room. It was different, mainly because there were a lot of toys here now and a pink racecar bed. I was as surprised as Sarah and Rachel were.

“MOM!” she gasped and I nodded. I was so surprised about this – I never told anyone that Sarah adored racecars and that she would want to be a racecar driver when she grows up.

Rachel got a seperate bedroom right next to ours and it was, of course, perfect, like any other bedroom here. Large, with it’s own bathroom.

“I’m kinda dissappointed,” Rachel sighed.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, I was hoping we all could be together, at least the first night here. We could watch Mr Bean, laugh and fall asleep together,” she sounded dissapointed. As was I because her plan sounded awesome.

“So why don’t we? I will let you know that I do have a king size bed so we’ll all fit right in! Do you have your laptop with you?” I smirked.

“Oh my gosh, could we? I’ll go grab it!” Rachel said excitedly.

“SLEEPOVER!” Sarah shouted from the top of her lungs and when Rachel returned, we all cozied up on the bed with the pillows on one side and laptop in the middle of us, so we could all watch the movie comfortably. And honestly, this was one of the best moment’s ever. I got to spend time with two of my favorite people in the world, right here. It was everything.

After about a half an hour, Sarah had already drifted into deep sleep, so me and Rachel shut down the laptop and just talked. We had one of our long talks and this time I listened and she spoke. It was so interesting to actually see my sister turn into this responsible and smart adult.

“Isn’t it crazy that you were my age when you gave birth to this little miracle?” Rachel pointed at Sarah with her head.

“It’s so crazy. It didn’t feel this crazy back then,” I smiled at her.

“It really didn’t. I think it was meant to be. You, me and her, we’re all meant to be besties!” Rachel exclaimed and I agreed. We sure were meant to be, all three of us.

“Hey, wanna go downstairs to the creepy kitchen? I’m parched and I would love to actually have a sip of some sparkling water,” I smiled and Rachel shook her head.

“Go on, I’m so tired that I’m probably going to be asleep when you’re back,” she smiled and we said goodnight.

When I got to the kitchen, I saw Drake again. Drinking. Again. I sighed loudly so that he could hear me.

“Hey, want some?” he said and lifted his glass. A bottle of whiskey was next to him and it was almost empty.

“I don’t really drink alcohol,” I smiled at him and he nodded.

“Of course, you’re a mom!”

“It’s not because of that. I just don’t really particularly like it. And thank you, by the way,” I said quietly.

“Oh, it was nothing. I just overheard Sarah at her birthday party talking about how she would be the best racecar driver ever, so I told Maxwell and we both found the bed in Uskea,” Drake took a sip of his whiskey when he finished talking.

“Oh, it was you?”

“Wasn’t that the reason you thanked me?” he looked confused and so was I. Why would he do this?

“I was thanking you for being there for me. Especially since Paul sucks and he threathened my family, it was scary,” I plopped in the chair next to his and he sighed.

“Listen, you don’t worry about that jackass anymore, I took care of it,” he looked at me.

“What does that mean, Drake?”

“It just means that I took care of it, okay? You don’t need to worry about that jerk,” he said coldly and it didn’t seem like the right time to press this further. I nodded.

“Thanks anyway. For being there. You are a good friend, Sarah really loves the racecar, ” I went back upstairs. I felt upset but I didn’t understand why. He did do nice things for me but he treated me like a jerk sometimes. It was so weird. He was both there and not there for me. And why the hell did he feel the need to meddle in the Paul situation? What did it mean? Should I be worried? I sighed loudly before going back into my room so I didn’t disturb the girls. Both of them were fast asleep. My angels.

The next few days went by like a rush.

“This is going to be your first big event with out me, so Ashley, you better behave!” Bertrand warned me with a stern look and I nodded. We all were preparing to go to Lythikos but there were many things going on at once. Especially in my life – I was not only having my “princess last minute training” from Bertrand but also juggling a daughter and a curious sister around the castle. Of course, both of them were having a blast.

Since it was always wintertime in Lythikos and both of my girls were on summer break, when they found out that they had to go to a winter paradise, it didn’t warm their hearts.

“Can’t we stay here while you’re there?” Rachel and Sarah looked at me with pleading eyes.

“Don’t you want to be together?”

“Mommy! You know we don’t like snow!” Sarah protested. I sighed. I didn’t like snow either, winter was my least favorite season so I did understand their frustration. The Fabiano’s and winter did not mix very well.

“What if we get them a tutor so they could learn all about Cordonia’s history while we’re away? So it’s not all fun and games and their time is productive? ” Maxwell suggested.

“Can we afford that?” I bit my lip.

“Of course, a tutor is no big deal, at least right now in this climate. Will they like that?”

“They have to. It’s either a tutor or they come to snowy land!” I laughed but I was dreading it myself. I hated everything to do with snow – I didn’t want to know what Olivia had planned for us there.

When I was finally in Lythikos, it felt like someone had slapped me so hard… I was in the Alps, it was freezing cold and I was without my girls that I’ve gotten used to so quickly. Olivia greeted us all with a nice speech about the pride of Lythikos, lit up a torch and ushered everyone to go ice-skating on the icerink she had prepared for us. I shook my head.

“Fabiano, it’s just a little ice!” Drake said and I shook my head again.

“No! NOOO! I hate anything to do with winter festivities,” I put my freezing hands in my pockets. Even with gloves on, this was overwhelmingly cold.

“Why?” Hana asked softly.

“I don’t know, it has always been that way – my family doesn’t like winter very much. The only good thing about it is Christmas, but guys, this is June! I’m not going ice-skating in June!” I shouted.

“Oh, c’mon! With me? I’ll teach you!” Maxwell asked and I shook my head.

“Either you come nicely, Fabiano, or we’ll be forced to have a snowball fight,” Drake teased and I shuddered at the thought. So I did come nicely but it wasn’t because of Drake’s threats, I saw Olivia already skating with the Prince. My Prince. And they both not only looked comfortable ice-skating but also comfortable around each other and I felt a ting of jealousy. They laughed and it looked like Olivia more than tried to flirt with him… And even though I told myself I was the only noble lady he was flirting back with – could I really know that for sure? Was I really that naive to think a man that was about to marry would only flirt with one – especially a single mom? He probably had flirtatious conversations with some of them…

Olivia did pull out all the stops to look her best today – she wore a white short dress but it wasn’t just any white dress, it was the one that girls wore for ice-skating competitions. It was probably a dig at every noble lady here – that she would win this competition as she would an ice-skating one. And she was marvelous on the rink, she did so many tricks and manoeuvres that everyone here was either in awe of her or jealous. I, unfortunately, was in the latter category. Olivia went all out showcasing her skills. It was hard not to feel jealous, especially when we were in her realm.

“So are you ready?” Drake called behind me and I turned to him, already in my skates.

“I’m scared,” I confessed.

“Why?” he looked confused.

“Because when I step into that rink, everyone will know what a failure I am and how much better Olivia is at everything,” I blurbed out.

“Oh c’mon, you’ve gotta at least try. Trying is the best you can do. Do you think that sitting this one out will be any better?” he took my hand and pulled me into the rink.

Once my feet touched the rink, I felt myself losing balance.

“Look at me,” he said and when I did look up, I was finally able to balance myself and go at a slow slow pace.

‘It’s also about confidance, you know,” he laughed.

“Well, I have no confidance in myself right now,” I smiled weakly at him and steadied myself with my free arm.

“Why does the winter bug you so much?”

“Nothing even remotely good has happened to me during winter time and I stand by that belief,” I smiled at him and then felt myself losing balance again. I looked around in the confusion and saw Olivia staring right at me with Liam by her side. He didn’t see me or didn’t seem to notice me and that hurt. Drake tried to hold on to me but in the end both of us just stumbled against each other and we fell in the middle of the rink. Drake started laughing and so did I.

“Pathetic, the two of you. Just pathetic,” Olivia said when she skated around us. Liam skated just right behind her.

“Are you okay?” he asked and he lifted me up, so I was standing right before him. I blushed and tucked a hair behind my ear.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Drake was just helping me… skate,” I smiled.

“Well, he failed, obviously. Why don’t you learn from the best?” Olivia looked at me and put out her hand so that I could take it. I looked at her quizically. Why was she trying to be helpful? Probably to tell me to back off or something…

“Actually, I wanted to skate with Ashley and to teach her, if that’s okay,” Liam smiled at Olivia. She looked shocked but didn’t mind. Well, not out loud, at least.

“I am here too, you know,” Drake said behind us and Olivia groaned.

“Come here, I will teach you then. Maybe then you’ll be in some shape to teach anyone yourself,” she said and pulled him away.

“Are you okay?” Liam murmured and firmly took my hand.

“I’m completely okay, it wasn’t a nasty fall,” I smiled back at him.

“No… I meant, the girls? Are they settling in okay? I know I wasn’t much help but I did try to get out of it, but my father requires my presence at everything lately, it’s been frustrating,” he sighed.

“Oh, I’m sorry about that. We’ve been good, really good. Just spending lots of time together, exploring the palace. Maxwell actually got a tutor for them so they’re back in Cordonia learning new things about it, I hope that they will share with their knowledge aswell, ” I answered quietly. Our conversation felt a bit awkward but I knew that it was only because I was the one being awkward.

“And Olivia? Are you okay with staying here, in her home?”

“Oh yeah, I’m fine with that. Only, if she’d be a little nicer… ” I sighed.

“It’s been hard seeing her to grow this cold towards people,” Liam frowned.

“She hasn’t been the ice queen all the time?” I gasped.

“Oh no, she was a completely different person even a few years ago,” Liam started. So he told me the story of Olivia – that her parents were assasinated when she was just 8 years old because they tried to assasinate Liam’s mother. They left their daughter with a lot of money but also in the care of their servants who were pretty much set in their ways and Olivia didn’t grow up with any love. Her aunt Lucretia left her to her own devices and didn’t even check up on her. So when Liam and his parents visited Lythikos, they took Olivia in, when they saw that Olivia was left completely alone. And so she and Liam became so close, she annoyed Drake because she was always there but they did get along well.

“I will never forget how she cried during the night when we were little. I heard her praying and asking for her parents to come back, that’s a lot to go through,” Liam ended the story on a sad note.

I was in awe. Did Olivia really have to go through all of that – alone? No one should have to endure that, let alone an eight year old. She was only eight…

Her story really stuck with me, mostly because it was so tragic. I felt so bad for calling her those awful names because I thought she was being a bitch because she was an entitled brat and that her parents didn’t care enough to teach their daughter the value of others. Now I understood it was just a protective mechanism so she wouldn’t get close to anyone and lose them again like she lost her parents. I couldn’t defend her but I did understand where she was coming from.

“Liam, I feel so bad for treating her that way,” I admitted to him.

“Don’t. Olivia could use a dose of reality even with her tragic background. She should know firsthand how hard it is to be alone and feel less than, she shouldn’t make others feel that way, too, ” he said firmly and I nodded in agreement. Liam held me close throughout the story, with both hands on me and it made me feel so safe. Confidant.

“How are you feeling?” I asked him.

“Me? Oh, just tired. I’m actually kind of glad I get to be here, I needed the change of pace,” he smiled and then Olivia skated back to us.

“Drake is hopeless, will you skate with me before we have to back go the chateau?” Olivia smirked at Liam and he nodded.

“I’ll skate back myself,” I smiled, feeling confidant in my abilities and he nodded. So I did. Well, almost, I was so close but then I felt someone crashing into me and I crashed down with them.

“Fabiano! You okay?” I heard Drake’s voice. I was all dizzy from the fall but I nodded. I looked at the person beside me and it was Maxwell. He smiled apologetically.

“I’m sorry Ashley, I was trying this new move to impress Hana but it backfired,” Maxwell frowned.

“Look around next time! You could’ve seriously hurt her!” Drake said and I shifted my eyes at him. Why was he suddenly so worried?

“I-I’m okay,” I smiled at both of them. Drake pulled me up and walked me out of the rink. He made me sit on the bench while he was taking off my skates. He looked cute. Oh no. I shook my head. What was happening to me? I wasn’t the girl who fell for two guys at the same time. Stop it! It’s all in my head! I told myself. But I knew why this was happening. He was being helpful and that usually got to me. I shook my head. I was just probably feeling neglected by Liam and that’s why I let my mind wander to Drake. That was it. I inhaled loudly.

“Is everything okay?” he looked at me with his big, brown puppy eyes.

“Everything is dandy!” I smiled back at him and I felt myself cringe. Dandy? Who said that? Who was I?

When we finally were heading back to the chateau, I watched as Liam walked with Olivia. When he saw me looking, he winked at me and it warmed my heart. It was just a little thing, but it felt good. Especially since no one else even noticed.

When we were shown our rooms, me and Hana jumped up and down from joy. Our rooms were right next to each others.

“Do you think Olivia knew this?” Hana asked.

“Maybe she’s not as mean as we thought she was?” I said and Hana smirked.

“Do you really think so?”

“People can surprise you,” as I said the words, I saw Drake walking towards us.

“Don’t tell me that my room is right next to yours?” he groaned.

“Nice to have you as a neighbor, too!” I answered in the same tone.

“Okay, but could you go to Hana’s room to gossip and to get ready? You’re both so loud, I just want some peace and quiet,” he continued.

“I never knew that you were an old man at heart, Drake,” Hana giggled.

“Goodbye!” he said and smashed his door.

“Why does he have to be that way?” I sighed.

“What way?”

“He’s so nice one moment, then so cold the next. It kind of gets annoying!”

“I know but that’s just how he is. Either you accept it, or you just don’t talk to him,” Hana said and I agreed. So I made a mental note to avoid him at all costs.

“Can we go get ready in your room? Mr Grumpy got into my head, ” I smiled and Hana nodded.

When I went into my room to take my makeup out of my suitcase, I gasped. My room was gorgeous – it was simple and everything was made of wood. It was not too much or too less. The interior was perfect. Hana’s room looked the same exact way. We both agreed that Olivia had an eye for interior design.

“Are you going with curls or straight hair?” Hana asked me when she plugged in the hair traightener.

“Curls, otherwise I’ll look plain.”

“Ashley, look at yourself. You could never look plain!” Hana laughed and I looked at her.

“Too bad Anita’s not here, she’d make us flawless,” I smiled.

“Hey! I’m not the worst hair stylist in the world,” Hana laughed and I agreed. She wasn’t the worst, in fact, she was very good. She made my curls the way I wanted them to look.

“So are you excited to do The Cordonian Waltz?” she asked.

“I barely know the normal waltz,” I sighed.

“Oh dear, do you want me to teach you?” she offered. She was so nice to offer but we really didn’t have much time and I didn’t want to spend it worrying about The Cordonian Waltz. If anything, the press will have something to write about.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Come on in, Maxwell!” Hana smiled.

“How did you know it was me?” he looked surprised.

“You always knock three times,” she smiled, looked at me and then blushed.

“He always knocks three times?” I furrowed my brow and looked at both of them. They looked like schoolchildren that got caught doing something wrong.

“Ashley, we don’t have much time before the ball, I brought you the dress,” Maxwell said and I nodded. He laid it down on the bed. I gulped and so did Hana. The dress was gorgeous – it was pale blue and looked like a princess dress from a fairytale.

“The Prince won’t stop looking at you!” Hana exclaimed and I smiled. When I was finally in the dress, I actually felt like a real life princess.

“I never want to take it off!” I said, hugging myself.

“Not even to bed?”

“Not even!” I said and laughed. When we were ready and stepped outside of Hana’s room, Drake was waiting for us already.

“Took you long enough,” he said.

“Well, wasn’t it worth it? Ashley looks like a real princess!” Hana kept complimenting me.

“Yeah, it looks good, Fabiano. Could I have a word before we go in?” he said cautiously and crossed his arms. I rolled my eyes. What did he want?


	9. A Waltz to Remember

Hana quickly made her exit and waved at us before going in. I waved back and turned to Drake.

“Yes?”

“Are you mad at me or something?” Drake looked surprised.

“Of course I’m angry! How could I not be? You’re this distant and icy person at first, then you’re caring and passionate, then you’re distant and grumpy again! You’re literally fire one moment, ice the next, it’s tiresome,” I exhaled loudly. I was frustrated. Was he even my friend?

“I don’t know how to respond to that,” he quietly replied.

“Of course you don’t, you probably don’t even notice your own attitude…” I groaned and as I was about to go away, he took me by the hand and I stopped.

“This is not what I wanted to talk about,” he said, his voice merely a whisper.

“What is it then?”

“I just wanted to warn you… Things here aren’t what they really seem, Ashley,” he looked into my eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“Do you remember the bachelor party we threw for Liam in New York?”

“Of course,” I nodded. How could I forget? That was the start of this crazy journey.

“Well, someone tried to sell the pictures of that night to the tabloids. Bastien informed me last week, we managed to outbid them and got them back ourselves. There were pictures of the four of us and, well, to be honest, you. Him with a drink in his hand, looking fondly at you and I think they basically wanted to paint you and him in a very bad light, ” he sighed.

“Wow. Would the tabloids really have something to write about? I mean, sure, we were flirting, but I was there – there was nothing scandalous even remotely happening,” I smiled at him.

“Oh gosh. You really are naive like a baby deer going into the hunter’s den… Don’t you get it? One picture with Liam with a drink in his hand and they can paint him as the “Drunk Crown Prince of Cordonia” and you, well, you probably would’ve been written in as his fling and whatnot. And then, when everyone realizes you are the same person fighting for his hand.. Well, let me just tell you that I don’t think his father would really approve of this marriage anymore,” he sighed loudly as did I.

“Wow, so that could’ve ruined both me and Liam?”

“Pretty much. Now the information is safe but we still have to find out who did this and why. The pictures were of such good quality and the angles were great that it was probably someone from our own circle…” he balled his hands into fists and I looked at him pleadingly.

“It’s okay, Drake. We’re okay,” I said softly.

“No, it’s just that.. I’m so angry at everyone trying to mess with Liam again. I hate this. I hate this feeling, I wish I could disappear sometimes and not deal with this royal crap anymore but I know that Liam needs me here, he told me that himself. Well, not in those words but he said he would support me leaving court if this gets too much but I just can’t leave him. He is my family now, he is my brother and I’d never leave him, he has done so much for me and I have to be with him, through thick and thin,” Drake sighed.

“Did your sister leave because it was too much?” I blurted out and saw his eyes widen for a bit.

“How did you..? Oh, that doesn’t matter. I have no clue why she left, to be honest. Savannah left and never left any contact and it broke me, Fabiano. It really did. Sometimes it feels like whiskey and Liam are my only friends,” he looked at me with his sad puppy eyes.

“Drake, not everything can be solved by drinking whiskey. That’s alcoholism,” I sighed.

“No, that’s escapism. Everything is so much better when you’re not sober,” he murmured and I shook my head. I patted his back and we left for the ball finally. The talk did help me realize that his roughness was just a shell he hides behind.

When we walked through the doors, Drake was already gone so I powered through the big ballroom until I saw Maxwell and Hana deep in conversation, not noticing people around them.

I looked around the golden room to find someone else to talk to so I didn’t interrupt them but in the well light room I couldn’t see anyone I would gladly strike a conversation with so I just stood there awkwardly, waiting for a chance to get a word in.

“Oh stop! Just because I know how to play a few songs doesn’t mean I am a piano virtuoso,” Hana smiled shyly.

“I disagree, I’ve heard so many rumors about your divine skills, Hana Lee,” Maxwell winked at her.

“Hi guys!” I interrupted their flirty session.

“Oh hi! Is everything okay?” Hana bit her lip and I nodded.

“You look marvelous lady Ashley,” Maxwell bowed to me.

“You also look dashing, lord Maxwell,” I bowed back and laughed.

“What? Did I do something wrong?” Maxwell self consciously looked at both of us. Me and Hana shook our heads to say no.

“Is everything okay? Why are you so formal?” I asked. He was visibly uncomfortable.

“I’m representing House Beaumont and the Duchy of Ramsford, so Bertrand called me a hundred times already just to make sure I’m formal with everyone and he specifically mentioned “even with Lady Ashley” so I’m trying my best,” he smiled.

“Well, I for one, do think you’re doing a great job, Maxwell,” Hana smiled back at him.

“Thank you, lady Hana… But I think we should go, the music is visibly quieting down so we can all find our places. You’re seated with lady Hana and Drake, lady Ashley. Unfortunately, I’ve been summoned to sit by the king and other suitors,” Maxwell said nervously.

“So Olivia sat me, Hana and Drake together? Our table will be much more fun,” I smiled.

“I know! I wish I could join you guys,” Maxwell sighed, we all said our goodbyes and we joined Drake by the table that was assigned to us.

“Welcome to the table of exiles,” Drake smirked at both of us.

“You seem comfortable,” I smiled at him.

“You know, getting treated like dirt doesn’t get old, not in nobility,” Drake said with a big smirk on his face.

“I’m sure you could talk to Liam and he would manage it so that you’d be treated right, I mean, you know you don’t deserve being treated like that,” I sighed.

“Oh no, Liam already told me that he would stick up for me but I don’t need it. He’s there when it matters, I’m mostly here because I never dress up anyway and everyone sticks me in the back with lots of alcohol.”

“Lucky you,” Hana smiled at him and he agreed.

We spent the evening chatting away about our advantages and disadvantages and felt sorry for Maxwell who had to endure all of the other stuffy nobles. They all literally had their noses up in the air and the atmosphere on those tables seemed so stiff while ours was lighthearted. We laughed a lot, in fact, we laughed so much that even Olivia glanced at our table a few times to see what’s the commotion.

Drake tried to convince us that we’ll be served cold food and, luckily, we didn’t. Olivia wasn’t that petty. At least she did treat her guests nicely. The food was sure fancy – a lobster bisque but since I didn’t eat seafood, I stuffed myself with the super fancy appetizers.

When we were done eating, Olivia stood in the middle of the ballroom and announced that it was time to do the traditional Cordonian Waltz. Me and Hana stood up while Drake remained seated and stared at his appetizers blankly.

“What’s wrong, Drake?” Hana asked in a concerning tone.

“I’ll just stay here, you guys go… Have fun,” he said the words so sadly that I wanted to stay to cheer him up but Maxwell was waving us over to him already.

I patted Drake’s back and he looked at me gratefully.

“You should go, it’s your chance to impress the Prince,” he whispered.

“With what? My poor dancing skills?” I laughed but he pushed me in Maxwell’s direction softly.

“Are you ready?” Maxwell asked, smiling.

“I would be, if I knew how to do the Cordonian Waltz,” I smiled back at him and his smile disappeared.

“WHAT? I forgot to teach you. Oh my god, I forgot to teach you. Bertrand will have my head for this. If only he knew… Ashley, I’m so sorry,” his face looked all panicked.

“Maxwell, Bertrand won’t know the difference and Ashley, it’s a dance where you mostly have to follow the lead, can you do that?” Hana asked. She was determined to make this work and so was I. I nodded in agreement and Maxwell took a big breath.

“I’m sorry, I’m such a failure.”

“Stop, you’re totally not a failure. You deserve to be here and I’m so glad I have you here instead of Bertrand. You are not only way more fun but you’re also my friend. I’m glad we get to do this,” I smiled at him and he smiled back.

“Well, then sorry for the freakout. Can I have this dance, lady Ashley?” he bowed and I curtsied and took his hand.

Just follow his lead, Ashley. Just follow him, I told myself to calm myself down. I knew Olivia was watching me, I saw the Prince already asking her to dance and my heart skipped a beat. I knew that he had to dance with the hostess and that he was being polite, but it still hurt. Knowledge doesn’t help when it’s the heart on the line, unfortunately.

Maxwell took a step forwards, I took a step backwards and he twirled me so fast, my head started getting dizzy, so I started giggling.

“Ashley, are you kidding me?” Maxwell started laughing and so was I. When he took me into his arms and I was faced with him, it seemed even funnier. He was so close. I could feel his heartbeat and we swayed to the rhythm slowly, our hips slowly touching. I felt a bit uncomfortable doing that with Maxwell that I started giggling again.

“What?” he asked, smiling himself.

“This is such a romantic dance, it feels funny to do it with you,” I confessed.

“Honestly, it feels weird doing with you too but I was doing fine until you started giggling,” he smiled.

“Is this how ancient Cordonians got flirty in the ballroom?”

“As a matter of fact, yes. It was the only dance where couples could openly flirt, if they weren’t together,” he nodded.

“I just hope Hana doesn’t get jealous,” I smiled and saw him blush. Gotcha!

“I’m sure she understands. And now we change partners!” he smiled back at me and softly twirled me into another guy’s arms. Everything happened so fast, I didn’t even get to react.

“Well, hello lady Ashley,” I heard Liam’s husky voice behind me. When I turned around, there he was – in all his glory. The Prince of Cordonia. The one that I was so desperate to impress.

“Hi,” I smiled shyly as he stepped forward.

“You look so beautiful, I can’t believe I actually get a chance to dance with you,” he smiled at me and I nodded. I was happy to be here, too. In his arms.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so busy, but you know, Olivia has given me the grande suite and it does get very lonely. Especially since I have a hot tub and no one to share it with,” he made a fake frown.

“Is that an invitation?” I was direct.

“Of course, the Prince would be humbled if you agreed to show up,” he smiled and twirled me. This time I didn’t giggle because it didn’t feel weird. Not with him.

“We’ll see,” I said in a flirty voice when I finally was facing him and our hips were swaying together so closely. With his arms around me and his hips swaying, I felt myself blush. It was arousing, and I looked into his eyes. He seemed aroused, too. I felt warm and really really didn’t want this dance to end. But it had to, especially when I saw Olivia behind him.

“Let’s change back, shall we?” she said and grabbed Liam by the arm. He looked at me apologetically and I nodded in agreement.

I looked across the room and saw Maxwell and Hana sharing the Waltz. They both looked so heated, I walked back to our assigned table where Drake was sitting, looking gloomy.

“Are you okay?”

“Oh, hi! Yeah, yeah. Just looking around for some suspicious activity, you know,” he said and even though I didn’t believe him, I nodded. Olivia and Liam were dancing right in front of us and it was hard for me to see them literally at the centre of the ballroom and him touching her the same way he had touched me minutes before. I knew I signed up for this but I didn’t think it was going to be so heartbreaking.

Just then Olivia did the unthinkable. Well, not unthinkable but despicable. She grabbed Liam’s head and pulled him in for a deep kiss. He stiffened and then relaxed. He slowly pulled away and when he did, our eyes met. He looked sorry and motioned for him and Olivia to go outside.

“How dare she?” I heard Penelope’s voice across the room. She sounded scary. I shook my head, this wasn’t happening. Maybe he did have a thing with Olivia?

Even Drake looked shocked.

“Are they having a fling?” I asked and he just sat there.

“I sure hope not,” he whispered.

“Wait, what did you mean by..” I didn’t get to finish because he stood up and walked away. Not to the bar even but he just walked away from the ballroom.

I tensed up. Should I leave too? I felt like leaving, I didn’t want to see her smirk or hear his apologies. I knew that he wasn’t responsible for it, but it was too much for me. I was so glad that the girls stayed at the palace and weren’t here. I slowly walked to my room, feeling sad for myself. I heard Maxwell and Hana call out for me, but I didn’t respond. I knew that they would understand.

The next morning, I heard three knocks at the door.

“You can come in, Maxwell!” I said and he smiled.

“Look, we can change this, I know that the press will be all over it but..”

“Maxwell, I want to go to the palace,” I said slowly.

“Wait what? We’ve been here only a day and..”

“Maxwell, I want to go to the palace where my girls are. I want to be comforted by them. I miss them already and you can stay here, but I really really really want to go. I take it the ball was the big event we were here for? ” I asked.

“Well, yeah, it was the main event but Olivia had two more days of fun planned for us,” he started and I shook my head.

“No, then that’s decided. I’m going. I don’t want to see what fun activities Olivia has planned for us in this winter wonderland because I hate this, I hate feeling like this and winter sucks,” I knew I sounded like a brat right now but I didn’t care – I wanted to get out of here where I couldn’t be blindsided by anyone.

“Okay, okay. But you will definitely join the next royal event?” he eyed me suspiciously.

“Of course, I’m still in it to win it. I just need a break from this… drama, ” I sighed and he nodded.

It took Maxwell a few tries but by mid-day I was back at the castle. My girls already knew the latest news from the tabloids and supported my decision of coming back early.

“Oh mommy, how could the Prince do that to you?” Sarah asked and I patted her head.

“It wasn’t his fault,” I whispered.

“It wasn’t but he could’ve told something to the press or to her, publicly. It’s like he’s afraid of a scandal but he didn’t even cause it,” Rachel said, arms crossed.

“I know, it’s hard. Being royal isn’t that easy, ” I smiled at them and they nodded.

“So much drama comes with being a royal. Our tutor Nancy told us that Cordonia is actually five kingdoms united under one rule and that’s why there’s been so much resistance and war,” Rachel said. I was impressed – they actually were learning something and it took them a day.

“And in the olden times, did you know, mommy, that one of the kings was a dragon?” Sarah said and made fire-breathing noises that me and Rachel laughed at.

“She said it’s a fairytale, Sarah,” Rachel opposed her.

“No! She said that many people believe it to be a fairytale but that she believes it to be true!” my daughter crossed her arms and pouted.

“Do you believe it to be true?” I asked.

“Of course! I know it’s true. There were many people with the fire abilities! They were probably related to the dragon!” Sarah smiled at me and took my hand.

“Then I believe it to be true, too,” I said and Sarah showed me all the drawings she made of Cordonia’s rulers over the years.

“So this is Dom, the dragon!” she said excitedly.

“Wow, we should send you to art school!” I said, looking at Sarah’s drawing. Maybe I was being biased but her drawings were so good and always accurate. She always thought of the very small details, especially now when she drew the dragon – it wasn’t a big red blob, the way I would’ve probably drawn it – but it was detailed, precise and very good. Of course, I wasn’t an art critic or have any artistic skills of my own but I could appreciate decent art when I saw it. It was hard to understand – did I feel this way because she was really good or was I super biased because she was my daughter and everything she did seemed wonderful to me?

“Mommy, you say it everytime!” Sarah blushed and hugged me.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Maxwell?” I was surprised. Was he really back so soon himself? I thought that he wanted to stay back in Lythikos.

“Not Maxwell,” a familiar, husky voice opened the door and stepped inside.

“My mommy’s upset because of you!” Sarah pointed a finger at him. It was so cute how protective she was being.

Liam lowered himself to Sarah’s level and took her pointed finger in his hand.

“I know, I’m so sorry for upsetting your mommy. I was upset, too. I didn’t get the chance to explain,” he sighed.

“Did you come back to apologize?” she eyed him carefully and Liam nodded.

“C’mon, Sarah, let’s give them a bit of privacy,” Rachel said and took Sarah’s hand.

“You better apologize nicely so my mommy’s happy again!” she said in a serious tone that made us all giggle a bit. She was the sweetest.

When the door was shut, Liam stood up and looked into my eyes for a while. It was such a surprise, I still didn’t believe it.

“I’m sorry for running away, I know it wasn’t your fault,” I started to talk but he shushed me.

“No, you have every right to feel upset. It probably felt like I mislead you and I promise that I’m not some playboy that goes around kissing all of his suitors. I can assure you that I don’t. I came back because you are important to me, Ashley. You are beautiful, kind, sweet, emotional, caring. When Maxwell told me that you were so upset you didn’t want to attend anymore festivities in Lythikos, it broke my heart. I never meant to hurt you, going into this I knew that this was going to be hard since I had a crush on you all along, but after the intimate dance we shared… I don’t ever want to let you go,” he said softly and he kissed me. Deeply. Passionately. I clung to him and to the kiss, as if my life depended on it. When we finally parted, he held me in his arms.

“Why does it have to be so hard?” I sighed.

“Life isn’t supposed to be that easy, Ashley.”

“For once, it sure would be nice if it could be,” I said and he looked into my eyes.

“I held a press conference today and I told everyone that what Olivia did was not okay. I told them that it wasn’t a consensual kiss and that doing what she did was never okay. She was pretty angry about that and I bet she was kinda happy I left when I did because the headlines of tomorrow’s papers will be so different than what they were today,” he smiled.

“I hope she doesn’t try to kiss you like that again!”

“I don’t think she will. I already told Olivia that she could ruin our friendship this way and it seemed like she understood. Well, I hope she did because I won’t tolerate this behavior. I hope that it makes you feel better,” he whispered in my ear and I couldn’t help but smile.

“I can’t believe you did all of that for me, ” I kissed his cheek.

“You’re worth it, believe me. Now can I help you and the girls get ready for the Royal Regatta?” he smiled mischievously.

“Won’t you be playing favorites?” I giggled.

“My dear, I’ve been playing favorites ever since I saw you in the Masquerade,” he said teasingly.


	10. Race to the Finish

“Just so you’re not caught off-guard, all of the competing ladies will have to compete in the first race at the Royal Regatta,” Liam said casually.

“WHAT?”

“I know, that sounds crazy but I’m sure House Beaumont will equip you with the finest men to steer your boat. The ladies don’t need to do a thing – just sit there and look amazing. I know you will,” he smirked and it made me laugh.

“Okay, I can get aboard with that,” I nodded. It didn’t sound so terrifying if I only had to sit there and hope for the best.

“It’s actually considered an honor if you do get to participate,” he smiled.

“Honor?”

“It’s kind of a tribute, if you will, to the people that came before us. We are not a big country, most of the wars we’ve had were between our own people but we haven’t been to war with other countries in a long time but when some of the neighboring countries were attacked in 1902, Cordonians ran to their aid with boats and brought them essential supplies, and provided shelter for the people who needed it most. We still remember this generosity and that’s why we honor it this way. It’s a reminder for every Cordonian that if anything like that ever happens again, we are prepared and that we must help, it’s our duty as Cordonians, ” he sighed.

“Wow, that’s … completely not what I expected,” I smiled at him.

“I know but that’s what I like about our history. It’s completely unexpected,” he smiled back. Liam took my hand and brushed his lips against my knuckles.

“Is this goodbye?” I was disappointed.

“Until the Royal Regatta,” he pressed a kiss against my cheek. When Liam closed the door, I sighed.

I wanted him. I wanted him bad and the idea that someone else could get him hurt me so much.

The next few days were relaxing but uneventful, the girls were with the tutor and I enjoyed the peace and quiet. No drama, no scheming, just me, my girls and my tv shows. But it all had to end someday. When everyone arrived, the palace was crazy. The servants that were relaxed just the day before were running around, trying to cater to every noble that just arrived.

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

“Maxwell?”

“I’m baaack!” he ran into my room with a big brown suitcase.

“How was Lythikos?”

“Honestly, it was a bit boring. Olivia wasn’t as snappy as usual since the Prince did humiliate her and the press, of course, noticed this and kept bugging her along the way. But I did get a good night’s sleep! How are the girls?” he streched his arms out and yawned.

“Still with their tutor, I was just enjoying “The Crown and The Flame” on Rachel’s laptop,” I smiled.

“Don’t spoil anything! I’m only on Season 1!” he closed his ears and mouthed “lalalala”.

“Are you done?” I laughed.

“It depends. Are you done spoiling?” he teased.

“Yes! Is Bertrand coming tomorrow?”

“Of course, he’s been very stressed lately. He will be back tomorrow before the Regatta starts to check up on everything. But, listen, I have an idea,” he smirked.

“Yes?”

“I actually picked up some navy rompers for you and the girls and I thought you could wear them tomorrow, just so you could all match. Is that okay?” he opened his suitcase and took out the rompers. The top part was white with navy stripes but the short part was just navy blue. They did seem perfect for a day out in the sea.

“How did you know what sizes to buy?”

“Please! I called the boutique ahead and had your girls measured aswell. Believe me, I am on top of the outfit game,” he smiled.

“Oh, I believe you,” I laughed. I really missed him. He was like the little goofy brother I’ve always wanted.

We chatted for a while until the girls came back, then it was time to say our goodbye’s for the night.

_____________________

The next morning, we were all ready at 9 AM sharp, our hair made by Anita, in our navy stripe Fabiano uniforms, as we called them and just lounging in my room. We all knew that this was very important for everyone, this would be the first time the girls were going to be presented to the press and the Cordonian public, so we all had to play our part perfectly.

My mom and sister already informed me that even American news had picked up on the events in Cordonia but it was mainly because no other American had done this before so they were all interested in how I was doing and how long can I do it. It was hard to comprehend that I was on magazines back home. Of course, my family had declined to say anything to the press, so they all called me “the mysterious single mom Ashley” and my mom sent me pictures of all the articles I was in. Some pictures were so unflattering that I was shocked they put them in.

“They do it for the drama, you know,” Rachel said and I agreed but it didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt. I did sign up for this. I did sign up for the Cordonian press to be all over me but I had no clue that the US even cared so much. I didn’t know that it came with so many speculations and crazy theories. Maxwell and Rachel were still reading the Cordonian message boards and told me all the crazy things people have been saying about me – that I’m actually Cordonian, just looking for some attention, that I’m a spy and such. We all had a good laugh over it.

_Knock! Knock!_

“Girls! Are you ready?” Bertrand came into my room cautiously and you could just see that he was extremely nervous.

“Whoa, what happened?” I asked and he sighed.

“Nothing ever goes according to my plan. But I was hoping that at least you call could save House Beaumont by doing some great interviews!” he clapped his hands together. Me and the girls looked at each other with weird facial expressions. _What had gotten into him?_

“Bertrand, you okay?” I patted his shoulder and he sighed loudly.

“Actually no. The crew I hired for you didn’t show up this morning. Is this what House Beaumont has come to? People cancelling at the last minute? How could our House stoop so low? What will become of us if this keeps happening and our reputation goes further down?” he started massaging his temples and complaining. I patted his back, trying to calm him down.

“I think you should go get a drink.. or two,” I smiled at him.

“But.. but.. it’s 9 in the morning!”

“Oh, but I think you’ll only benefit from that,” I smiled sweetly at him and opened the door, so he’d go. He nodded at us and when he left, I exhaled.

“Well, today will be fun,” Rachel smiled.

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

“Let’s go!” Maxwell said when he opened the door.

“Gladly. Your brother is such a headache,” I said, annoyed and took Sarah’s hand.

“Hey, he has a reason for it! The glory of House Beaumont or whatnot..” Maxwell smiled.

“Yeah, yeah. I’d like to see Bertrand actually manage real people problems just once, not trying to uphold some reputation or impressing the press,” I was annoyed. So annoyed.

“Well, today he has an actual reason for being upset because the only person who agreed to help us on the boat is Drake,” Maxwell bit his lip.

“So what really happened to the crew?”

“Well, we couldn’t afford to pay them the price they were asking so they just refused to do it and told us to, ahem, _shove it_ , ” Maxwell whispered in my ear so that Sarah couldn’t hear and I chuckled.

“Okay, so it’s you, me and Drake. We’ll manage,” I smiled.

“But we have to win!”

“Maxwell, we don’t have to. It’s just something that Bertrand probably told you. Yes, it’s the King’s favorite event but that doesn’t mean we can actually win against a professional crew. If we don’t, it’s fine. It’s important to relax and have fun once in a while too, you know. Something Bertrand forgets and that’s why he’s been so stressed,” I sighed and hoped that Maxwell could listen to reason. You could see from the way Maxwell treated his brother that he adored him and put him on a pedestal. On a pedestal, I honestly didn’t think Bertrand deserved.

“I guess you’re right,” he nodded and smiled. But he wasn’t as excited as he usually was.

“Mommy’s always right!” Sarah entered herself in the conversation.

“Oh, baby, that’s not it, I’m not always right. But I always try to be helpful,” I smiled at Maxwell and he nodded. I really didn’t want to sound preachy but I wanted to get through to that boy. He was older than me but sometimes it really didn’t feel that way. A lot of people here acted immaturely and it astounded me sometimes. But after a talk with Rachel, we realized that most of them never had people who actually checked up on them or let them mature in their own way. It was hard to watch that happen and since I had a big mouth, I usually tried to help in my own way.

We got into the big limo and we all rode in silence. Sarah exclaimed a few things along the way and we all smiled or laughed at the things she said, but we were still not talking to each other. Me and Rachel exchanged a few silly glances but Maxwell didn’t seem to notice.

When we stopped, I looked out the window. The marina was filled with balloons in the shape of ships, food stalls where people could buy their food and a LOT of people. Most of them with cameras, so I assumed they were the press.

“Wow,” I said when Maxwell gave me his hand to help me out of the limo.

“I NEED THAT BALLOON,” Sarah said, pointing to another girl with a ship baloon.

“I think I need it, too!” Maxwell exclaimed, took Sarah by the hand and both of them went to the balloon rack. I couldn’t even get a word in – they were too far off and Maxwell was already buying both of them the ship-shaped balloons.

“Okay, this went well,” Rachel smiled and I shook my head playfully.

“Sarah and Maxwell are soulmates,” I said, looking at both of them just dancing away on the lawn with the balloons.

“Imagine Maxwell having a kid,” Rachel said and both of us giggled. Maxwell would be in quite for an adventure.

When they finally came back, Bertrand was already waiting for us on the “red carpet”. It was crimson red and the press wasn’t allowed past it but they were all interviewing Madeleine right now who looked charming as ever. She was wearing a white, long dress with a deep slit that accuented her slim body. When she saw me staring, she winked and made a small nod. I nodded back. I didn’t expect her to be so friendly, especially since all the tabloids made her sound like she was obsessed with fame and glory.

“Go make House Beaumont proud!” Bertrand said to us and all three of us nodded.

Before we could even get a step in, I felt someone tapping on my shoulder.

“Liam!” Sarah shouted and hugged his leg.

“Oh! Hi there sweetie!” he said and smiled. I could tell that he was surprised by the hug but Sarah was a big hugger. Especially if she thought that the person was special.

“I expected you to already be by your father’s side,” I smiled.

“I’m running a bit late,” he smiled apologetically.

“You don’t like the water that much, do you?” Rachel smirked when she saw his nervous glances at the waterside.

“Well, boats actually. I hate yachts and boats and everything to do with sailing,” he confessed.

“Does your daddy know?” Sarah gasped and so did we.

“No and I can’t tell him. It would break his heart and I don’t wanna do that to him. Now we should go say hi to the press ,” he smiled. I knew he avoided the question.

“Will you tell us the story later?” I pleaded.

“Probably not,” he laughed and I playfully punched his arm.

“Not fair,” I said and we laughed.

“Prince Liam! Lady Ashley!” I heard reporters almost screaming our names and we all walked forward.

“Could we get a picture of all four of you together?” a familiar man asked. I looked at everyone for approval and when they nodded, I nodded too. I sucked in my stomach, stood tall, smiled and waited for the camera clicks. Then I noticed Sarah. She was doing silly poses.

“Sarah, don’t you want a nice picture?” I asked and she shook her little head.

“The silly pictures are the ones we’re going to remember!” she exclaimed and held onto her balloon.

“Well, then we should all have at least one silly picture on the count of 3..” Liam smiled at me and Rachel and I sighed. Oh, Sarah. She had everyone wrapped around her little fingers. On the count of one, I sticked out my tongue and I heard a woman scream that she got the perfect picture of us. We all smiled at each other.

“Lady Ashley, is this your daughter? How old is she? How is she adjusting to courtly life? Who’s the other young lady with you?” a woman in a suit drowned me in questions. It took me a while to answer them all and, luckily, both of my girls stood there smiling politely.

“Sarah, how do you like Cordonia so far?” the lady asked her and Sara squealed because finally someone was paying attention to her, too.

“It’s so pretty, I love Cordonia! It’s like my fairytale book!” she smiled.

“Lady Rachel? What do you think of Cordonia?” the interviewer turned to Rachel directly and I felt her tense up. She usually didn’t do so good under pressure.

“Oh! I think it’s wonderful. The Cordonian people are great but the sceneries always amaze me. There’s no better place to spend my summer!” she smiled and the lady nodded.

“I think we should go, my father is about to make his speech, ” Liam said, trying to move us along and, probably, further away from the press.

“Prince Liam! Just one last question for you, how is your relationship with lady Ashley progressing? Is she really your favorite suitor?” the interviewer looked determined to get the answers but I knew that Liam would never say that, not in front of these people. No matter how much I wanted him to.

“I think our relationship is blossoming into something very beautiful. All in good time,” he smiled at the interviewer and when we were farther off, he sighed.

“Now that’s finally over,” he smiled. We were engulfed with the sound of the trumpets.

“What’s that?” Sarah closed her ears with her hands because they were becoming very loud.

“My father is finally ready for his speech,” Liam gestured for the big podium where King Constantine stood.

“Wow, he’s old!” Sarah said and I widened my eyes and looked apologetically at Liam.

“Sarah, didn’t I tell you not to say that about people out loud?”

“I’m sorry, mommy, I forgot,” she hugged my leg.

“It’s okay, I don’t think he would mind. She isn’t wrong, though,” Liam chuckled and I picked up Sarah, so that she could have a better look at what was happening on the stage.

“Ladies and gentlemen of Cordonia… I welcome you all! Today is a wonderful day, especially since we all will be enjoying my favorite event of the social season – the Royal Regatta! Since this event has always been historically important to the people of Cordonia, I chose this event to make my announcement… At the end of the social season I will be stepping down as your reigning monarch so in a few weeks time Prince Liam will be your new king, ” he said in a very serious tone. Reporters were swarming in, some even screaming their questions but he lifted his hand to silence them.

I looked at Liam and he looked shocked. He patted my back. I had a bad gut feeling about this… Something didn’t feel right. Liam was going to be a king in a matter of weeks, that meant that the woman he would marry would be forced to be a queen right away. Was I ready? Was I even _considered_ at this point?

“I know that all of you have questions but all in due time. I will release an official statement. For today, let’s just enjoy the festivities and let an old man enjoy some boats! Let the Regatta begin!” the King smiled and everyone applauded him.

“He called himself old. I told you!” Sarah said and looked at me. Rachel smiled and so did I. The kid had guts, I had to admit that. We walked quickly to Maxwell’s side. He and Sarah bumped their balloons together.

“Will you guard this while we sail on the boat?” Maxwell asked Sarah and handed her his balloon. She nodded and held it close to her. I patted her on the head and said goodbye to the girls.

“Isn’t Bertrand coming?” I looked at Maxwell and Drake, who was already on the boat, waiting for us to board.

“Oh no. I told him to get another drink. He started going off again about Beaumont pride and how could we stoop so low again. When I asked him if he wanted to help so you actually could get a chance to win, he started to get a headache so I told him to just go. I think we’re actually better off without him,” Maxwell sighed and I agreed. I waved goodbye to the girls who were waiting for us on the harbor. Hana’s yacht was right next to ours so we waved to each other.

“Pathethic!” I heard Olivia on the other side and turned to face her boat. It was just a little bigger than ours and she had a crew of about four men at her disposal, they were all wearing black.

“What’s the matter? Jealous that I got a better crew than you?” I smirked at her.

“What? No. I would never… NO! You have no chance of winning against a Nevrakis,” she kept shouting but I just ignored her and it just made her angrier. Which made me laugh more because I knew that she was so desperate for attention.

I saw the glances Drake and Olivia exchanged.

“What’s up with you two?” I asked and he just shrugged it off.

“Nothing. You better look at your own boat. You won’t be sailing like the rest of ladies, you know. You have to pull your own weight if you want to win this,” Drake grumbled.

“Oh, Drake. I always have to do things differently than other ladies, but I can pull my own weight, believe me,” I smiled at him and he nodded.

“So you have to watch the wind indicator for us. When it changes, you just tell us so we can adjust the sails accordingly,” Maxwell explained.

“We’ll tell you whatever needs to be done next when the time comes,” Drake added and I nodded.

“Sounds easy enough,” I smiled and we waited for the command from the King, who was already holding the pistol in his hand. He was standing next to Queen Regina and my Liam. Who actually looked at me at the same time I was looking at him. He winked and I playfully rolled my eyes in response.

“Racers, are you ready?” the King asked and everyone cheered. He pulled the trigger and all of the boats started moving. Olivia took the lead and, of course, she looked very smug.

_I’ll show her_ , I thought.

The wind indicator suddenly changed.

“The wind changed!” I shouted at the boys.

“Adjusting sails!” Maxwell shouted back.

“Here, Fabiano, tie this down for us, we need to hold the sail in place,” Drake shouted and handed me a rope. I quickly tied it down and made a sailor knot.

“Wow, that’s a pretty tight knot,” Maxwell appreciated it.

“I have some survival skills,” I smiled.

“A buoy ahead, brace yourself!” Drake shouted at us and masterfully made the boat turn at the halfway point, while me and Maxwell held onto the rails of the boat for dear life. Our boat was going so fast that in a matter of a few minutes, we overtook Olivia’s boat and crossed the finish line first.

“Drake, you saved us!” Maxwell shouted happily and I joined in.

“Drake! Drake! Drake!” we chanted and when we finally returned to the harbor, everyone was clapping for us.

“I didn’t know you were so good with boats, I honestly thought we were going to lose,” I smiled at them.

“I know, I remember your “inspiring” speech. Well, good thing Drake saved our ass,” Maxwell smiled and hugged Drake dramatically.

“Thanks?” he smiled. It was obvious that he wasn’t used to the praise. He got all red and awkward.

“You can be an honorary Beaumont for the rest of your life, buddy,” Maxwell patted him.

“Thank you, but no thanks. I do like my commoner status,” he smiled back at Maxwell. He did seem very pleased with himself.

Liam, the King and Queen were already waiting for us, next to Sarah and Rachel, who were still cheering us on.

“I knew you could do it!” Sarah happily cheered.

“That was very impressive, lady Ashley,” the King smiled at us.

“Thank you but it was mostly Drake, I didn’t know he was such a good sailor!” I smiled and the King looked at Drake.

“Excellent job, young man!” he praised him and for a moment there it did look like Drake blushed. He thanked the King.

“And Maxwell, congratulations. Your House always upholds its reputation,” the King nodded at Maxwell and he nodded back.

“I commence you and your crew, lady Ashley. I hope you enjoy the rest of the festivities!” the King said and slowly walked away with the Queen.

“Yes! Bertrand will love to hear that!” Maxwell broke into dance as soon as the King was around the corner. We all shared a laugh.

Liam took a step closer to me.

“Unfortunately, I have to go to watch the official races with my father in his booth,” he frowned.

“Oh, where do we go?” I smiled back at him, I didn’t want him to know how disappointed I was.

“Well, Olivia usually hosts her glorious parties on her yacht. You could join her?” he suggested and I laughed.

“I don’t think so,” I smiled and he nodded.

“We’ll meet again tonight, don’t worry. There’s still the beach party,” he smiled mischievously and took my hand in his and brushed his lips on my knuckles. I hated that he did that because it meant that he had to leave. I sighed and waved goodbye to him.

“Mommy, where do we go next?” Sarah asked. I really didn’t want to go to Olivia’s boat.

“Do you want to come to my boat?” Hana came out of nowhere and asked. Me and Sarah nodded immeadiately. She was our savior.

“Are you kidding? Your boat would be so much better than Olivia’s,” I smiled and sighed, with relief that I didn’t have to see Olivia’s smug face, at least not for a while.

“My parents made me have my own viewing party and all of the nobles they’ve invited declined because they’re all going to Olivia’s party… They really overestimated how popular I was. But it would be so embarassing if I didn’t go to my own party, ” she sighed and I wanted to hug her right then and there. Her life sounded so lonely.

“Psh, those nobles don’t know what they’re missing. We’ll gladly go, isn’t that right girls?” I looked at both of them and they nodded in excitement.

“Oh, I haven’t had a chance to meet you both yet! I’m Lady Hana Lee,” she shook hands with Rachel but she pulled Hana in for a hug.

“OH!” she gasped.

“We’re a hugging family,” Sarah said and hugged her leg. Hana laughed.

“That’s great because I love hugs,” she smiled back at the girls and slowly walked to her boat.

“Are you coming boys?” I turned back to see that the guys were still in their place, whispering to each other.

“We kind of have to ..” Maxell started.

“Watch the races with Liam…” Drake added.

“Because we promised not to leave him alone there,” Maxwell finally finished the sentence. Both of them looked guilty and looked at the ground.

“Oh, just go! We’ll have plenty of fun without you,” I smirked.

“Doubt it, Liam’s booth has the best crabcakes!” Drake said and both of them started sprinting in the direction of the booth.

“Well, our crabcakes are way better!” Hana shouted back at them and we laughed.

When we boarded her ship, some servants were already leaving. Hana’s boat was way fancier than House Beaumont’s boat – it had a white deck and she even had a few sofas and pillows. And the most important thing – it had lots of appetizers on the fancy tables.

“Wow, this is way fancier than the Beaumount boat,” I smiled.

“Well, my parents did this to impress the royal family, of course, it’d be fancy,” she smiled.

I felt buzzing in my purse so I quickly took out my phone. It was an unknown number. My number was known only to the people that were important in my life, I had a feeling that this was a call I should take.

“Hana, could you quickly watch the girls while I go take this? ” I showed her my buzzing phone and looked at her apologetically. She nodded.

“Of course, we’ll have fun. You go!” she waved me away and sat the girls down on her silk pillows.

“Hello?” I quickly answered the phone.

“Ashley, did you really take our daughter to Cordonia? I watched the livestream and let me tell you, I’m very unhappy with this decision,” I heard Paul’s voice in the other end of it. I froze. I took a big gulp of air. This wasn’t going to be a good conversation.

“What do you want?” I tried to sound as cold as I possibly could.

“To actually get to meet her. To talk to her, to tell her everything. To tell her that her mommy even arranged for her daddy to be beaten up by her new royal boyfriend,” his voice sounded menacing.

“I didn’t arrange anything, stop making up lies!” just the tone of his voice angered me.

“We’ll see what a judge will say about this… Oh, and about the silly competition you entered? The Prince will never choose an uneducated, stubborn single mom over the beautiful ladies he has there, I’ve seen the looks he gives the blonde and the redhead. They definitely have done the dirty. And not only that, they will do whatever he likes, while you have no clue how to keep a man happy so you better get your ass back as soon as you can and stop embarrassing yourself,” his voice was so venomous and he tried to hurt me so badly. To be honest, it did hurt. A lot. I felt tears forming. _Paul sucks, Paul sucks, Paul sucks_ , I told myself to calm down. I couldn’t show any weakness.

“You don’t know shit about relationships,” I retorted.

“Oh my dear Ashley, it’s you who doesn’t know anything. I’m getting married soon and I want my daughter to meet the love of my life,” he said calmly. My blood was boiling inside. I knew he tried to hurt me, but why? Why was he doing it now?

I didn’t want to continue the ridiculous conversation, so I just hung up and blocked his number. Was he really getting married? Was this the reason that he suddenly was in such a hurry to meet the daughter he never wanted in the first place?

_Paul sucks_ , I repeated to myself as I walked back to the girls.

“Is everything okay?” Hana asked. I wanted to confess and tell her the full story but I couldn’t because the girls were here right next to us, so I just smiled and nodded. Sarah didn’t even know who her father was. She never really asked about him and I did suspect that maybe my parents or Rachel have said something to her. I was worried she would ask because I didn’t want to lie to her but I never even had the opportunity.

“It was nothing, just my mom, checking up in on us, she was watching the livestream and was very happy we won the race, ” I lied through my teeth. I promised I wasn’t going to ruin this day for anyone, not even myself, so I exhaled and decided to deal with Paul later.


	11. The Beach party?!

Hana’s private party was just the thing I needed to forget myself, we had such a good time. We even named her new boat “The Chocolate Strawberry” because we all agreed that no one else would name their boat that. We played “I Spy” and laughed at all Rachel’s jokes and believe me, she had many.

“Is it time to go to the beach yet?” Sarah asked, for the fifth time already.

“Not yet, ” I replied and she groaned.

“Maxwell promised to make sandcastles with me,” Sarah frowned. I smiled and patted her head.

“We have to wait for the boats to turn around,” Hana replied, smiling.

“Whaaat? The boats aren’t back yet?” she gasped and we all laughed. After a while we did see a few sailboats coming our way.

“The pirate one takes the lead!” I exclaimed.

“I had no clue you were such a fan of pirates,” Hana smiled sweetly at me.

“Oh, well, you know, I love rebellion,” I smiled and high-fived Rachel, when the pirate sailboat did finish first.

“Giiiiirls?” we heard Maxwell’s voice in the distance.

“MAXWELL!” Sarah stood up, when she heard his voice and was about to sprint to him so I quickly stopped her by taking her hand in mine.

“Careful! You still have tiny legs, you can’t get off the boat all alone, ” I looked at her seriously.

“Not fair,” she whispered and I nodded. It wasn’t fair but it was the truth, after all.

When we got off the boat, I finally let go of Sarah’s hand and she ran to Maxwell’s side.

“Did you have fun?” he asked her, lowering himself, so he wasn’t towering over her. Sarah nodded excitedly.

“The pirates won!”

“I know, do you wanna be a pirate? Arrgh,” he closed one eye and pretended that his left hand was a pirate’s hook. We all chuckled, he was so good with kids, I had no idea that Maxwell would be an amazing babysitter.

“Can I join in?” Hana asked, while laughing. Sarah side-eyed her, as if to check if she was good enough to join their little party.

“I promise that she’s going to be a fun pirate, arrgh!” Maxwell said and Sarah looked at Hana for confirmation.

“Arrgh!” she said and all three of them laughed. She took them by the hands and we were finally on our way to the beachfront.

“They should totally have kids together,” Rachel said and winked at them.

“Oh gosh, yes! That was what I was thinking,” I smiled and looked at the three of them. Sarah looked very comfortable and was talking a lot. She usually a very shy child in NYC, she didn’t have a lot of friends but the ones she did have, she cherished and talked about a lot. It made me realize that she was finally coming out of her shell. I was afraid that not having a father made her shy and that’s why she preferred mine or Rachel’s company but now it felt like I did everything right. _I did good_. She was going to be just fine.

I actually never thought in a million years that Maxwell would actually enjoy babysitting or being with a five year old so much. Especially since we met, he was raving about extravagant parties or his dancing skills. Or maybe it was Hana’s company that he enjoyed the most? All three of them looked comfortable enough. Hana and Maxwell were shooting each other shy glances and chuckles while Sarah, oblivious, to their romance, kept babbling on about pirates and hidden treasure.

When my feet finally touched the warm sand, it felt like this was meant to be. The missing puzzle pieces from my life were finally falling into place. I was still wondering why Paul had to surface after years of not caring but I quickly sent that thought elsewhere. _Not now, later._

“Is that Drake, eating a burger besides that table?” Rachel asked, squinting. _What?_

I squinted, too, and that was exactly what I saw. Drake was standing beside a table, eating a sloppy joe and chuckling at all of us.

“Come here, come all!” he shouted and all of us just started running.

“Oh my gosh, there’s barbecue ribs? Sloppy joe’s? No fancy finger food? No appetizers that still make you hungry?” Rachel gasped.

“You betcha!” Drake replied and smiled at all of us. He was standing beside an almost empty bottle of whiskey.

“Wow, how did you score a whole table for yourself?” Hana asked.

“Oh, it’s for all of us, I just ran here first because I knew what was going to happen!” he chuckled.

“Did you finally get the guts to ask for real food from the palace?” I chuckled.

“No, Liam wanted to make you and your girls something so that you don’t miss home too much. Of course, he didn’t have to convince me twice, I was sold on the idea right away,” he smirked.

“Drake, did you drink the whole bottle?” I asked, looking at the bottle next to him. He sure looked happy. Unusually happy.

“Maybe that’s why I’m so chipper!” he exclaimed and I rolled my eyes. I made a mental note not to let him go in the water.

“Uh.. How does one eat a sloppy joe gracefully? Utensils or hands?” Hana asked, looking confused. We all giggled. Oh, Hana. She was adorable. I handed Sarah a sloppy joe.

“Be careful!”

“Mommy, we’re at the beach, no one will care that I’m dirty!” she smiled. I smiled back but I did know that everyone cared. The press was still walking around, filming everything and watching. And I knew that people would be critical – if they were critical of how people are dressed, they sure as hell will be critical of parenting choices that the American girl makes. But at this moment, I decided not to care and let her be happy.

“Watch me, Hana, you eat a sloppy joe like this!” Sarah said and took a big bite out of the burger. Everything around her mouth was covered with sauce. I looked at Hana’s shocked face.

“But-but I can’t eat it like that!” she gasped and we all smiled.

“Sure you can, just dig in!” I did the same and Rachel followed. Hana kept glancing at us like we were the crazy ones. She took a big breath.

“Hana! Hana! Hana!” we cheered her on and when she finally took the first bite, she looked liberated. Joyful. Happy. Covered in a sloppy joe, of course, but she looked delighted with herself.

“Isn’t it great?” Rachel grinned and Hana nodded.

“I never knew that you ate such amazing food!” Hana smiled.

“Well, then you should join our trips to America with Liam and Drake! We eat a bunch of fast food and then we go dancing, what could be better?” he smiled and Hana blushed.

“Not so fast, dancer boy. Both of them are competing for Liam’s hand right now, we’ll make travel arrangments later, okay?” Drake looked seriously at Maxwell and he nodded.

There was an awkward pause because everyone suddenly realized that we weren’t just a bunch of friends meeting for a barbecue in the middle of a beach. Me and Hana were competitors for Liam’s hand in marriage and these were Liam’s best friends.

“Well, I’m off for a walk, anyone else?” I smiled and Rachel joined me while Sarah took Maxwell’s hand and made him build sandcastles with her.

“Got a little bit awkward, huh?” Rachel smiled and I agreed. We walked along the beach in silence and I was mustering the courage to tell her about Paul, when we heard a voice calling my name.

“Ashley?” Liam’s voice echoed through the beach and Rachel mouthed: “go to him, I’ll be somewhere nearby!”

I stopped and waited for Liam to join me.

“Did you like the food?” he smiled and I nodded weakly.

“Of course, it was so nice of you to arrange it.”

“Is something wrong?” he looked worried and I knew I had to tell _someone_.

“This morning was great until I recieved a phone call from Paul,” I sighed.

“Paul? When? How?”

And I told him about the threats and the way he spoke to me that made me feel sick to my stomach. It irked me that instead of just hanging up, I just kept listening to him. It made feel so little and like I was 17 again. It wasn’t the best feeling.

“I’m going to ask you to give me your phone,” he said seriously and I looked at him in surprise.

“No.”

“What do you mean – no?” Liam looked shocked. Either he didn’t understand what it meant when people say no, or he was in shock himself.

“I said no. That phone is my only means of communicating with my mother. Besides, what can Paul do? Make another threathening phone call? _Oh no_! _What shall I do_?” I mocked and when I did, I immeadiately regretted that. It looked like I hurt Liam’s feelings a little.

“Don’t you want to be safe?” he ask softly when he looked at me.

“I am safe. I was dumb enough to actually pick up a call from an unknown number and he just happened to be on the other end. He just wants to get to me, ” I sighed.

“Of course he does. It’s just… I don’t want you thinking that you are less than because some moron can’t keep his mouth shut. I love that you are stubborn. I love that you have a child, a past, that you’re not just a blank page but you come with these great experiences. You are just wonderful and I’m thankful every day that you’re here and not running for the hills,” he sighed and took my hand in his. I smiled at him and hugged him. He was surprised by the hug, but he kept his strong hands on my back. That was exactly what I needed. _Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry,_ I told myself.

“You are wonderful, thank you,” I smiled when we both let go and he kept my hand in his.

“Is there something more?”

“Well, he said that I arranged for him to be beaten up by my “royal boyfriend” and I didn’t arrange this, nor I asked for you to do it. I was just wondering – was it something you did because you were angry or what?” I asked slowly, waiting for his honest answer.

“I wouldn’t. I’d like to beat him up myself for the way he has treated you and still does, but I wouldn’t arrange this secret thing and not tell you about it. I did arrange for the extra security at your mother’s home and I thought that the black limo’s and buff bodyguards would scare him off,” he replied. What? If he didn’t, _who_ did?

“Yeah, my mom already thanked me for the extra security, she feels so much better coming home now,” I smiled.

“I’m glad. I know that being associated with the royal family is hard, especially in this world, where word travels fast,” he smiled. I looked back at our friends, who were having fun. Sarah was making something in the sand with Maxwell and Drake, while Hana and Rachel were splashing each other in the water. And then it hit me.

“Liam?” I grabbed his hand.

“Yes?”

“Would Drake do that?”

“Do what?”

“Threaten Paul? Or have someone beat him up? Paul told me that he wanted to tell Sarah that I arranged for him to get beaten up. What if he tells that to someone else and ruins your reputation? ” my hands were shaking. Paul wasn’t capable of telling everyone, was he? _Oh, for God’s sake, Ashley, you know he is and probably will do anything to sabotage you_ , I told myself and I curled my hands into fists. He was capable of so much more, I was sure of it.

“I don’t know, Ashley. Why would Drake do that?”

“He told me that he “took care of Paul”, what else could that mean?” I looked into Liam’s eyes.

“That’s a serious accusation,” he sighed.

“Don’t you believe me?”

“I do. That’s why I’m reluctant to confront him. He is my best friend, I don’t know how to feel about him going behind my back like this. He could have at least told me beforehand, ” Liam said. He sounded so disappointed.

“Well, you can stay here, if you want to but I’m going, I can’t wait any longer for answers,” I turned to leave but he took my hand.

“Let me go,” I whispered in anger.

“I’ll go with you, you little firecracker. Just let me wrap my head around this,” he smiled at me and suddenly, I didn’t feel as angry anymore. I rolled my eyes, playfully and he kissed my cheek.

“I should get angry more often,” I grinned.

“Please don’t, I already have enough angry nobles around me at all times. That’s enough for a lifetime!” he laughed and we walked back, hand in hand.

“Drake, could we speak to you for a moment?” Liam asked seriously.

“Someone’s in trooouble!” Maxwell grinned and Drake shot him a look that shut him up.

“What’s wrong, guys?” he asked when we were further away, so that no cameras or no people could hear our conversation.

“So today I recieved a phone call from Paul, who was angry because he said that I arranged for him to be beat up. I would never do this, nor did Liam. And I hate to ask this – but was this what you meant by “taking care of Paul”?” I asked nervously and looked into Drake’s eyes.

“Well, actually, no. I asked one of my good friends to pay him a visit and scare him off, so that he wouldn’t have the guts to threaten you anymore. That apparently didn’t work,” Drake sighed and avoided my gaze.

“Why would you do that?” Liam stepped into the conversation.

“Because you did nothing to the guy who threatened your suitor’s family!” Drake roared back.

“I had everything under control, the girls are safe in Cordonia, her parents got extra security. Everything was fine,” Liam retorted.

“But is it? See, Paul still reached Ashley despite you having everything under control. You’re always the diplomat, but it never works out does it? Some people only understand force,” Drake sighed.

“The force didn’t help either, since he still called,” Liam looked at Drake intently and you could see how disappointed he was.

“Drake, what’s happening? ” I looked into his eyes and he laughed.

“You don’t get it, do you? I know you’ll choose the Prince but you don’t get it, his loyalty lies with the kingdom. It will always come first, before you and before Sarah. He will marry someone he doesn’t love just because his country is that much more important to him than himself and I…” Drake started.

“What are you saying?” I gasped.

“Fabiano, I have feelings for you. Real feelings and I can’t offer much but I have to get out, this place is smothering me. Especially since no one here even appreciates my efforts. But I want to do that with you, if you’d let me,” he finally finished and I couldn’t help but gasp. I had my suspicions but I never thought that he would air his feelings like this. I shook my head.

“Drake, how much did you drink?” was the first thing out of my mouth. I didn’t know how to react. I did like him but not much more as a friend. Yes, he was attractive, yes, he could be charming but I couldn’t actually see myself with him. Not in this lifetime. I looked at Liam who went still. He didn’t say a word and I was as shocked as he was.

“Only a bottle of whiskey… or two. So that’s it then, I’m leaving Cordonia tomorrow. Alone. Good riddance, right old pal? I was so sick of it anyway,” he threw his arms in the air and started walking away when Liam called him back.

“What’s wrong, Prince?” as Drake said these words, a hand flew past me and into Drake’s face. Liam hit Drake in the face. _WHAT. THE. HELL._ I just stood there, unable to process what had happened. Yes, it was shitty of Drake in all levels, especially since he told me himself that they were like brothers. But I always thought that Liam was civil. It was so unexpected.

“Hey guys!” I shouted when I saw Drake getting into position and a fight was about to begin.

“GUYS! People are watching,” I said loudly when the press turned our way to see the commotion. Luckily, they weren’t allowed to come near us and they had to stay in their designated areas but they were as close as they could be and they were watching everything.

“You went behind my back and you offered the girl I love to run away with you, how dare you? I’ve never been so betrayed and it might actually be better if you left,” Liam said, enraged. Wait, what? _The girl he loves?_ I didn’t know how to react but it did make me feel warm inside. But right now I ignored it because it wasn’t the right time. _So not the right time._

“Oh boohoo! Poor little Prince, fell in love with a commoner girl. Would your father even allow you to marry her or will he make you marry Olivia or Madeleine because they’re better suited for the role?” as Drake said the words, a punch went flying from Liam and Drake screamed in pain.

“Liam, stop!” I shouted at him and Liam looked at me. He widened his eyes as if he awoke from a trance or something.

“Fuuuuuck!” Drake screamed and we both ran to him. His nose was bleeding.

“Are you okay?” I asked and looked into his eyes. He looked hurt.

“I’m fine. I’m leaving,” he looked at both of us and started walking.

“Drake wait!” I shouted after him and he laughed.

“Why? So you can laugh at me?” he said mockingly.

“No, because you both can’t leave it like this. This isn’t right. Doesn’t your friendship mean something? You’ve known each other from childhood, it shouldn’t end because of some silly girl,” I sighed. I felt defeated. I didn’t know both of them that long but this felt wrong. Ending their childhood friendship because I was in the way? I wasn’t going to allow it, not on my watch.

“You’re the not the first girl that chose Liam over me,” Drake sighed and put his finger on his bloody nose. It looked horrible, his face was all bloody.

“I’m not?”

“She’s not?” even Liam sounded surprised. We both looked at each other, then at him. He continued on walking, as if nothing had happened.

“Drake!”

“What?”

“Who’s the girl?” I asked and he finally turned around.

Liam found some handkerchiefs in his pockets and handed him one. Drake nodded as a thanks.

“Olivia,” he sighed.

“Olivia?” we both asked simultaneously.

“Yes… The Olivia Nevrakis. I’ve been in love with her since childhood. Well, at first, I really hated her but then I developed feelings. And then I had the guts to actually ask her out. When she accepted, I was so happy. She asked for our relationship to be kept a secret until she was ready. And then a few days before the Masquerade, she told me that it was over. I didn’t even get the chance to tell you because she told me that she’s going to compete for your hand and that she would destroy me if you found out,” he sighed and just looked at us, defeated. I couldn’t help but feel bad for him. Of course, he’d get attached to the first girl who showed up after, it was a defense mechanism.

“I’m sorry,” was all I could say. I didn’t know how to respond to that. It was heart wrenching. How could she do that to him?

“That’s why you were feeling so frustrated,” Liam sighed.

“Yeah. Olivia wanted me only as her boy toy and when I finally refused, she got angry with me. I thought that by taking care of Paul, I would at least help someone. Now I know I royally screwed up and I’m sorry about that and I’m sorry about the things I said… It was wrong of me, ” Drake said, still holding the handkerchief to his nose.

“Thanks. But you have to know that I’m not even the least bit sorry that I punched you,” Liam said and Drake shook his head.

“Oh man, I deserved it. I would’ve done the same. Your punches were the only thing that could sober me up at this point,” he smiled at Liam.

“What now?” I asked. We all looked at each other, unsure at how to proceed. The press was still on us and there was no way they didn’t film the punches and everything that went down. It was going to be tough, getting out of this mess.

“Now I leave Cordonia,” Drake sighed. Me and Liam looked at each other.

“Are you sure?” Liam asked.

“Oh, don’t worry, I will be back for your coronation. I wouldn’t miss it. I just need a little break from all of this. I’ve been living with nobility for far too long, you know,” he said and we nodded. We could understand that. We all marched back slowly and devised a plan. Me and Drake would just say “no comment” if we were asked about the situation if there’s press present and Liam would issue a statement in the following days, stating that it was a private matter and we would like it not discussed anymore. It sounded reasonable. Especially since I didn’t want anyone finding about Paul or what happened afterwards.

Draked waved his goodbye to us and Liam kissed my knuckles again.

“I hate saying goodbye,” he said and I nodded. I hated goodbyes with him, too.

When I got back, everyone stared right at me.

“Is everything okay?” Maxwell asked, concerned. I nodded. I didn’t want to explain the situation with Sarah present, so I just told them that it was a private matter. I did whisper to Maxwell and Hana that I’d explain later. They nodded, understanding. We continued the beach day for a bit, until it was time to turn back. When we got into the limo, Bertrand was already waiting for us.

“Well, well, well, you’ve certainly caused a commotion today, Lady Ashley,” Bertrand said when I entered the limo.

“Hello to you, too, Bertrand!” I smiled at him.

“I think I’ll need to check up on you more. Much more,” he said, his face stone cold.

“Why?” Maxwell asked.

“Well, Maxwell, for once, you didn’t teach her the Cordonian Waltz. And did you even tell her that she needed a swimsuit? Because I never saw her in one today, but the other ladies were showing off their new couture swimsuits. People are going to think that it’s a rebellious statement but it wasn’t. It was simple forgetfulness. We can’t afford that right now,” he looked straight at Maxwell and he got redder by the second. I knew Sarah wanted to say something, so I just turned to shush her. This wasn’t our issue and I didn’t want to get involved yet. But Bertrand sounded scary.

“What does more of your presence entail?” I asked him.

“Oh, I’m going to be watching you like a hawk, Ashley Fabiano,” he said it in a tone that sounded threatening. I smiled, he didn’t scare me, even though, I knew he was trying to.

When we finally got back to the palace, Sarah noticed that she had lost both hers and Maxwell’s balloons.

“I WANT OUR BALLOONS BACK!” she said.

“I will find a way to get them back, sugarplum!” Maxwell answered in his worried tone.

“Oh, it’s just balloons, Maxwell. Don’t worry about it,” I smiled.

“But Sarah wants them!”

“Mommy, I want them!” Both of them replied at the same time. I rolled my eyes at both of them.

“Sarah, honey, listen to me, okay? You already had a balloon, you lost it. It is sad, but you didn’t take good care of it and that’s why it’s gone. You are not getting another one, now we have to get ready for bed,” I said firmly. She looked at me with her puppy dog eyes but it didn’t work, I was immune to them. She sighed and nodded. She said goodbye to Maxwell and went in with Rachel.

“But Ashley, why can’t she? It’s just a balloon, if I made a royal call, she could have so many balloons at her doorstep by tomorrow morning,” he objected. I looked at him angrily.

“Listen, Maxwell, I know you mean no harm but this is my daughter we’re talking about. I don’t want her to grow up to be a spoiled or entitled brat. I want her to be well rounded and to realize that she can’t have things, just because she wants them, I want her to know the worth of the things she has, ” I responded in an irritated tone.

“Okay, okay, I didn’t mean anything by it, sheesh,” Maxwell looked a little annoyed. I sighed. It was a long day and we all were a little irritated.

“Good night, Maxwell,” I waved at him, instead of our usual goodbye hug. He waved back, too. When we finally showered and got all the sand out of Sarah’s hair and feet, I tucked her into the racecar bed.

“Mommy do you like Maxwell?” she asked and I smiled.

“Of course I like him, he’s very funny!”

“Why don’t you marry him instead of Liam? I want him to be my daddy,” she smiled innocently. It was going to be a long night.


	12. The Apple of His eye

The next few days were a mess. Me and Sarah had a serious conversation about Maxwell and boundaries. I was a very irritated that he thought he could spoil her and give her literally everything. It wasn’t the way I imagined raising my daughter. Growing up in NYC, I met a lot of spoiled and rich kids that were so entitled, just because they were rich or their parent was famous, it got frustrating and I never wanted that for my own children. I wanted them to be humble but the palace life, of course, wasn’t a humble one at all. Sarah saw all the shiny, beautiful things and, of course, she wanted them. I did tell her to ask for my permission next time and to actually wait for an answer and we both agreed it was best. I explained the situation I came from and it seemed like she understood.

“I don’t want to grow up to be mean, mommy,” Sarah said and I smiled. I knew that because, obviously, no child wants that but it was reassuring to hear it from her.

The headlines of magazines and tabloids, especially in Cordonia, the past few days were terrible. “Future king punches out his best friend because of an affair!”, “Is Drake the father of Liam’s suitor’s child?”, “Royally punched” and more. In America, they were speculating my involvement in the fight but here, they thought I was the reason for it. It was true, but the reasons weren’t. Me and Rachel read the headlines every night and we both knew that it would be worse since Drake left and everything was out in the open. Liam did issue a statement for privacy but the press decided not to listen to him. It just made me angry at them – yes, they were doing their job but it put me in an awkward position. The King probably didn’t approve of this at all.

Drake left immediately after the beach party. He said a quick goodbye to me and the girls, Sarah even cried because she liked the “grumpy one”. He sure did liven up the party with his sarcastic jokes so when he was gone, it felt empty in the palace but we didn’t have time to be sad – Bertrand was testing all of us on royal protocol and he made sure we knew the history, the proper attire and such.

It did feel a bit tense between me and Maxwell for a while because none of us wanted to apologize and we were both very stubborn. He thought he was doing a good thing for Sarah and that I’d be happy that someone wants to spoil her and he just didn’t get it. Even Bertrand noticed this but he only scolded us and told us that there was no time for personal squabbles and that we should resolve it as fast as we could. I glared at Maxwell and he glared back.

“ _Sorry,_ ” I rolled my eyes and looked at him.

“ _Sorry_ ,” Maxwell answered sarcastically.

“Brilliant! Now, we continue onto learning about Percival Beaumont, his accomplishments were legendary, if I do say so myself,” Bertrand continued. He didn’t even notice that nothing was resolved, he just wanted to continue teaching me about nobility. It was a _long_ night.

After another lesson, I sighed. I wasn’t ready to go to bed yet, so I went downstairs to the kitchen, to get a glass of water. The light was still on and the first thing I saw was an opened bottle of whiskey. But it wasn’t Drake this time, it was Liam. He just sat there, staring at his glass, wearing jeans and a maroon jumper. It was strange to see him in his casual clothes, not his suit with medals on. He looked drunk and thoughtful.

“A penny for your thoughts?” I asked, when he didn’t notice me right away. He gasped and when he saw me, he smiled.

“Oh! Ashley, I’m glad to see you,” he patted on the chair next to him so I sat down.

“Everything alright?”

“I’m not sure. Tomorrow’s my first event without Drake by my side. We’ve been the best of friends for a long time and now it just feels…” he groaned. Liam looked so sad, I patted his back and smiled.

“It’s alright, you’re allowed to feel empty. Or sad. It’s understandable. Even I feel sad, even though I only knew him for a couple of weeks. The kitchen sure does feel empty without him drinking all the whiskey,” I smiled at Liam for encouragement. Liam nodded in response.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I know it’s my fault he left,” I whispered. I did feel guilty. I knew I shouldn’t, he was a grown man and could make his own decisions but it was hard, especially since I knew how long they both have been friends. If I didn’t press the issue or insist on talking, this whole ordeal would’ve never happened and everything would be okay… but I did what felt right for me.

“It’s not your fault, not at all. He was wrong by going behind our backs… But I’m just sad that he couldn’t even tell me what was going on. Did you know that Drake has never really had girlfriends? Even I dated a few girls here and there while he was just not having it. He always wanted to make sure that I was okay, ” Liam sighed. His shoulders slumped and all I wanted to do was to cheer him up.

“So Olivia was his first girlfriend?” I gasped. Drake totally looked like the bad boy type of a guy, who dumped girls left and right. I knew he wouldn’t do that, but it was strange to hear that he didn’t date before. Very strange, especially nowadays.

“She might be his first _everything_. I’ve known both of them most of my life, this is just so odd to comprehend and I can’t believe Olivia did this. To him… Drake… He is a good one, you know,” Liam sighed again. I nodded.

“He really didn’t deserve the way Olivia treated him… ” I kept patting Liam’s shoulder and he took a sip of whiskey.

“I don’t blame him, you know,” he said after a long pause.

“Blame him?” I furrowed by brow at him.

“For having feelings for you. I don’t blame him at all, you’re so… charming. Sweet. Wonderful. You care so much about people and that’s why probably Drake fell for you. You are so different from her,” he looked into my eyes and I knew I was as red as a tomato right now. I wasn’t used to getting so many compliments in one day.

“Stop. He just thought he likes me, and it’s just because Olivia hurt him so bad. He’s still hurting and he would probably run to Olivia in a heartbeat, if she called. I just don’t understand her sometimes. Yes, her past is tragic, but why does she treat people like garbage?” I sighed very loudly and Liam smiled.

“I don’t want to talk about her.. Sorry. Are you ready for tomorrow’s event?” Liam changed the subject and caressed my cheek. I blushed again. His touch was so tender, I leaned into his touch. I wanted him to take me right there, in the kitchen, and to soothe his aching soul.

“Yup! Bertrand has been teaching me all of the tips and tricks in their room. Honestly, it feels more like school than my actual school was,” I chuckled and he cracked a smile. _Yess!_

“Ashley?”

“Yes?”

“Do you love me?” he asked suddenly. I was surprised, Liam wasn’t usually so bold. It was probably the whiskey since he didn’t drink much.

“Do you love me?” I asked him right back and he chuckled.

“You know what? I do. And I want to marry you so bad, you can’t even imagine, ” he smiled. I felt the whiskey on his breath and scrunched my nose at it. Liam saw that and he poked my nose.

“You’re drunk,” I giggled.

“You’re beautiful,” he replied. We laughed with each other for a while and then I helped him clean up the kitchen.

“Wouldn’t want anyone knowing that the next king of Cordonia is drunk in his own kitchen,” he said loudly and I shushed him.

“Shh! We really wouldn’t want that,” I giggled and we started slowly walking to his room. I tried to help him walk but it was hard since he was so much bigger than me. And more musclar, he was so heavy. I was happy that no one saw us, otherwise they would’ve thought that we’re both drunk. When we got to his room, he pulled me into his bed with him.

“Ashley, please don’t ever marry Drake. I know he’s great but I love you, I really do,” he said and this time he sounded worried. You could hear by his voice that he had way too much to drink. I smiled and didn’t answer right away. I liked laying in his arms. I felt safe. No one could hurt me here.

“Don’t worry… I only lo _-”_ I started saying but I was interrupted by his snoring. He fell asleep?! _Okay, well, this is not awkward at all,_ I thought. I poked his cheek and he was completely unconscious. _Unbelievable, it was the first time I was actually ready to confess my love to him and he fell asleep!_ I couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Silly things always happened to me. I kissed his cheek then as quickly as I could, I undressed him, so that I could tuck him into bed neatly. He deserved it, especially since he was going to have a major hangover and he was going to regret the things he said. It took me about a half an hour because his body was heavy and unresponsive, but I succeeded and it was a tiny victory for me. When I slowly walked to my own room, my heart felt full. He loved me. Me! He wanted to be with me. I slept very well that night.

In the morning, we were all rushed quickly by Bertrand to eat our breakfast and to get to the limo. I had no clue why, since most of the other nobles weren’t even up yet.

“Mommy, is Applewood in Cordonia like Hollywood for us in the States?” Sarah asked and as I was prepared to answer, Bertrand chuckled.

“No, Applewood is famous for it’s apples, it has the largest apple orchard in Cordonia!” I beamed because Sarah finally asked something I could answer confidantly. Especially since me, Maxwell and Bertrand covered it last night.

“We’ll be staying in Applewood Manor, it’s right next to the orchards. Ashley, if you don’t mind me asking – which apple varietal is Cordonia most known for?” Bertrand eyed me.

“Why, The Cordonian Ruby, of course!” I smiled at him and he nodded.

“How is it different than other apples?” Sarah asked. She was in Cordonia for a few weeks now, but she still couldn’t understand why the apples were such a big deal. I did try to explain it to her but she just said that Cordonia should be proud that it’s so beautiful. I couldn’t argue with that, so I didn’t.

“Young lady Sarah, it’s very different. For starters, it’s red as a ruby and it’s flavor is pleasantly crisp with an intense flavor that has the notes of honeyed caramel,” he answered and looked very proud.

“Caramel? I looove caramel!” Sarah beamed.

After a few hour drive, I was very glad to step out. I needed the fresh air, especially being cooped up with Bertrand and Maxwell.

“Lady Ashley, Maxwell, a word in private, please!” Bertrand said and both of us walked up to him sheepishly, while Sarah and Rachel walked around the huge property around us, to strech out their legs.

Both of us walked a bit further with Bertrand, so that the girls couldn’t hear us.

“What happened between you two?” he crossed his arms like an angry father would.

“Nothing!” Maxwell answered quickly.

“I demand an answer, Maxwell!” Bertrand’s face got red and angry. Maxwell sighed.

“Fine! We got into an argument because Ashley doesn’t like the way I buy Sarah things,” he pouted.

“Are you serious right now, Maxwell Percival Beaumont? You got into a petty argument because Lady Ashley doesn’t want you buying things for her daughter? Am I hearing this right?” Bertrand’s voice got louder and louder. _Percival?_ Maxwell’s middle name was Percival? Like his ancestors? Woah, his family really did take the Beaumont name seriously.

“When you put it like that, it sounds silly,” Maxwell sighed.

“It doesn’t sound silly, it is silly! She is the mother of the child, Maxwell. While the child is in her care, she has the ability to choose what she wants for her child. If she doesn’t want you to buy her things, and I don’t think I have to tell you twice that we can barely afford to buy anything right now, then stop. Can you be a responsible adult for once and stop this squabbling? ” Bertrand said and for once, I agreed with him. Maxwell sighed and looked at me.

“I’m really sorry, Ashley. It’s just.. I want her to be happy, you know,” he smiled and I smiled back. I did know.

“I’m sorry if I sounded a bit harsh, Maxwell. It’s just, I don’t come from money and I don’t want Sarah getting used to being spoiled… And it was too much for one day, especially with Drake leaving. I wasn’t in a very good headspace. Friends?” I extended my hand and Maxwell brushed it off. I gasped but he pulled me into a bear hug.

“FRIENDSSSSSS!” he smiled and Bertrand nodded approvingly.

“Now, to the task at hand, lady Ashley, the stakes are higher than ever. If you marry Liam, you will be the new queen and everyone will try to undermine you. You are one of the frontrunners but don’t let it get to your head!” Bertrand said strictly.

“Who are the other frontrunners?” Maxwell asked.

“I’ve been told by my informants that there are three- Countess Madeleine, lady Hana and lady Ashley,” Bertrand said with a nod.

“Olivia isn’t a frontrunner?” I gasped. Bertrand shook his head.

“After the stunt she pulled in Lythikos and after the Prince’s statements, she hasn’t been even considered as a frontrunner,” Bertrand said seriously. I was glad that Olivia’s antics didn’t get her anywhere. It also explained Drake’s behaviour in Lythikos – he left when Olivia kissed Drake in front of everyone because it hurt him. _Poor Drake_ , I couldn’t help but feel sad about the whole situation.

“Lady Hana is considered a frontrunner?” Maxwell asked nervously.

“Yes, why?” Bertrand eyed Maxwell suspiciously.

“I just didn’t think she was, she isn’t seen with the Prince a lot,” Maxwell smiled but I knew he was worried that Hana could be chosen.

“While she hasn’t been in the public with the Prince that much, she has been seen mingling with the other suitors. She’s also adored by the public,” he answered and we all nodded. Hana was really a gem, there was no surprises there.

“We have time to get acquainted with the premises and then we have get ready for the Apple Blossom Festival. Is this clear? ” Bertrand asked sternly and we nodded.

I quickly found my girls walking through the gardens.

“Applewood Manor is so beautiful!” Rachel beamed but Sarah shook her head.

“I don’t really like it… It feels a bit weird in here,” Sarah said and I agreed. Something felt off about this place, I could feel it too. It was undoubtedly beautiful but something felt uncomfortable. It felt like we were being watched and I didn’t like it. The Applewood Manor was made of stone and it looked a bit creepy, at least for me. Everything here screamed overcompensation, especially the gardens. They were huge mazes, flower bushes everywhere. It seemed over the top, unlike the palace gardens.

We walked around for an hour, until Bertrand called upon us. Anita was here and he wanted us to be the first ones to get ready.

“How are you doing, my darlings?” Anita asked as she put the red dye in the ends of my hair. The red dye had faded from my hair since the last time she dyed it but I loved how the red in my hair complimented my facial features.

“It’s been… a rollercoaster,” I smiled at her, while the girls combed their own hair and were ready for Anita to do wonders with them.

“Oh, I’ve read almost every tabloid there is. It’s crazy what they make up, isn’t it?” Anita smiled and I agreed. While she let the dye set in my hair, she quickly did Sarah’s and Rachel’s hair. Sarah got her hair braided in a fishtail while Anita put Rachel’s hair up in a bun and put on a pretty tiara on her head.

“So you also feel like a princess,” Anita said and I knew that Rachel was grateful. She wasn’t in the spotlight much and it was a bit underwhelming, when everyone in the press only cared about me or Sarah. Even the blogs didn’t have her much in them for which I, of course, was super grateful, but as a teenager, she wanted some acknowledgment. I understood that, but I also didn’t want Rachel to end up in gossip sites and people saying mean things about her. It’s hard enough to endure that as an adult.

“Too bad that there aren’t any teenage princes to impress,” she sighed.

“Oh chin up, dear. If there were, most of them would be too boring for you anyway. Right now, your priority should be bettering yourself. You’ll get far that way,” Anita winked at Rachel.

“Are you married, Anita?” Rachel asked and she nodded. Her eyes were glowing and she looked happier than ever.

“My wife is the most amazing woman you’ll meet,” she smiled and we all looked confused for a moment. _Wife?_

“Ohh, my friend Kayla back home also had two mommies! They were Lebanese!” Sarah exclaimed. We all chuckled.

“It’s lesbian, not lebanese,” Anita corrected her and she was so good with Sarah because she answered all the questions she was asked. Sarah was very curious, so of course, she asked about how they met and fell in love. Anita explained everything so calmly. Me and Sarah never really got to talk about people with different sexualities, because it never came up and I didn’t think she was ready since she was so young. But, clearly, I was wrong. She was very ready. I was also thankful that Anita had no issues explaining her point of view. Anita worked as a hairdresser for the nobility and she saw her future wife in many events but she was too shy to do anything about her crush. When she finally did, they both were happy – especially since the wife was a fashion designer and she didn’t want to ask Anita anything – she thought Anita was some stuffy noble, not a hairdresser and she also had a crush on her.

“Do you have children?” Sarah asked when Anita started doing my hair again.

“No, we kept our relationship a secret and were just happy that we could be in each other’s company,” she smiled.

“Why did you keep your relationship a secret?” Sarah furrowed her brows.

“Well, no one really liked lesbians or gay people back in the day. It’s a religious thing, I never understood it. So to be safe, we kept it a secret, so we both could work, have friends. The King passed a law 10 years ago, allowing us to marry each other and we were very grateful for that alone. We’ve been married for only ten years but we’ve been together forty,” she smiled sweetly.

“Wow, those people were meanies. I hope that I will be allowed to marry whoever I want,” Sarah said and crossed her arms. She was so innocent, it was adorable.

“I hope so too,” Anita said. She was done with my hair and it looked fabulous.

“I love it,” I said, when I looked at the mirror. Anita beamed.

When we walked outside, I inhaled the fresh air. Wow. Anita’s love story tugged at my heartstrings. It was sad that they had to keep their love from everyone. If she could do that, I could endure anything. She truly was an inspiration.

Maxwell walked up to us, smiling.

“Prince Liam sent you a little gift, you and the girls get matching outfits again!” he beamed and all three of us smiled. We liked matching – it felt like a uniform of some sort.

“Great! Let’s go change,” I took Sarah by the hand and waited for Maxwell to show where our rooms are.

“Well, the deal is – you actually got a seperate room from the girls. I have no clue why, since me and Bertrand even have to sleep in the same room together,” he sighed.

“WHY?” I asked. It was so unfair, I didn’t want to be alone.

“I have no clue, that’s what the servants told me, when I asked them for the Beaumont House rooms, our room is right next to the girls, but yours is on the other side,” he shrugged his shoulders.

“I don’t want to sleep alone,” I sighed.

“Well, you could just probably go to their room anyway. No one will check that,” he smiled and I nodded. It was strange. We got to the girls room and there they were – the dresses laid on the bed, beautifully.

“Yours is probably in your room,” Maxwell said and I nodded. When I walked to my room, it felt strange again. Like someone was watching. The inside of the Manor didn’t seem welcoming, it just felt cold. I could even feel the breeze coming from the windows. I felt uneasy so I practically ran to my room to find the dress laid out on the bed. The room had just a bed in it, my suitcase was on the floor and there weren’t any cabinets or even a dresser to put my clothes in. Just a mirror and a bed. And stone cold walls. _I will not stay here_ , I said to myself. They didn’t even give me a room with a bathroom, like the girls had. Someone went out of their way to make me feel unwelcome, I could just feel it beneath my skin. _If Anita was able to endure years of hardships, I can endure staying in this creepy mansion,_ I told myself. I decided to get dressed in the room, so that Bertrand wouldn’t get angry at me but I heard voices behind my door. I held my breath so that I could hear. The voices were unfamiliar and were hushed. I told myself I was imagining things but the voices got louder and louder.

 _Creepy, creepy, creepy,_ I told myself and got dressed as quickly as I could when I heard a knock on my door. Another knock. And another.

“Ashley, come out, we have to go!” Bertrand’s voice echoed through the halls. _Oh, thank god!_ I wasn’t even religious but I was ready to praise any entity right now. I gladly opened the door for him.

“I think I’m going to sleep in the girls room, this room makes me feel cramped. It doesn’t even have a dresser,” I confessed and Bertrand nodded.

“This room is a disgrace, I have no clue why would anyone put you here,” he agreed and we rolled my suitcase into the girls room. It felt right.

Before we could leave, me and Rachel had to put makeup on while Bertrand groaned. He knew it had to be done so we looked more presentable, but he was still annoyed by it.

“If you don’t like it so much, you can go outside,” I told Bertrand.

“No, no. I’ll stay. All the nobles are arriving and they want to indulge in annoying small talk,” Bertrand sighed.

“I thought you liked small talk!” Rachel gasped.

“Not with these people,” Bertrand replied. When we were done, he even mustered out a compliment.

“You look great!” was all he said as he ushered us outside. A small crowd was already forming in the middle of the orchard and servants were walking around, dazed.

“Mommy, you should probably go where Hana’s standing!” Sarah pointed out. I nodded.

“Okay, stay out of trouble!” I smiled and walked up to Hana.

“Hi! How are you?” she smiled politely.

“I’m so glad to see a familiar face, ” I smiled back at her.

“Well, I’m not glad to see you at all. Shouldn’t you be with Drake and the other commoners?” I heard Olivia sneer behind me. I quickly turned around to take a look at her. She was wearing her usual midnight dress and her smile seemed extra venomous.

“Olivia, Drake’s not here,” I rolled my eyes. How could she forget? Or did Drake really didn’t mean anything to her that she didn’t even realize what happened.

“What? He’s not going to be here? How could he? This is a very important event for Cordonia. And for Liam!” she actually looked surprised. Me and Hana shared a look. Didn’t she follow the tabloids? His departure was all over Cordonia, the press even took pictures of him when he arrived at the airport.

“Olivia, he left Cordonia after the beach party. Don’t you follow the news?” Hana said quietly. Olivia sighed and composed herself. She was rattled by Drake’s departure, it was pretty visible, no matter how hard she tried to hide it.

“Well… good riddance then. And no, I have no time to indulge in silly gossip magazines, I have a duchy to run,” she rolled her eyes as she said the words and I shook my head.

“You do realize we know that you two had a fling or whatever that was?” I smiled at her. Her face couldn’t hide the shock.

“What? Who told you?” she sneered again.

“Drake himself,” I smiled at her. She was clearly taken aback but I felt better, I had the upper hand. She wasn’t going to hurt anymore people I cared about, I made a mental note to make sure of that.

“Shh! Stop your chitchat!” Madeleine said when she joined us and pointed at the herald who was announcing the King and the Queen. The press moved forward and started taking lots of pictures and videos. I sighed. If I had to leave, I knew I wouldn’t miss the press attention on me at all. The King raised his arms as to quiet everyone.

“Welcome to the annual Apple Blossom Festival!” King Constantine smiled at everyone.

“As per our tradition, myself and the ladies of court will sample the apples of the first picking of the season!” as the Queen gestured, several servants walked around with baskets full of apples. When I got mine, I examined it carefully. It was red and shiny – truly deserving the name of the ruby.

“Ladies, please try the apples!” she said and I complied.

I took a big bite and suddenly felt a mix of sour and bitter tastes in my mouth. Definitely not what I was expecting, especially since Bertrand praised it so much but I tried to keep it in my mouth and swallow it. When I did, I smiled at the camera’s pointed my way. The reporters looked eager to take pictures. Too eager. Because they knew how The Cordonian Ruby actually tasted like but they expected everyone to keep a calm demeanor.

“How was it?” A reporter shouted from afar.

“It was very… interesting!” I smiled at the reporter and they all kept taking pictures. I looked at the other ladies who were dealing with the apple. Olivia and Madeleine were really bred for this – they didn’t waver once while me and Hana, of course, were surprised. Penelope and Kiara were standing behind us and they were coughing. The press took a note of that, too.

“Is everything okay?” I whispered to Kiara.

“Muy bien. Very sour, I didn’t expect it an explosion of bitter and sour tastes,” she said inbetween coughs.

“It’s certainly has a strong flavor to it,” Penelope nodded.

“We’ll take a short break and prepare the girls for a baking contest,” the Queen said and everyone scattered. I felt a tap on my shoulder and I already knew who it was.

“Hello there,” I smiled when I looked into Liam’s face. He didn’t look so good – his eyes were puffy and he looked sad.

“Hi!” he smiled back.

“Are you okay? You look..”

“If you wanted to tell me I look like I’ve had a huge hangover the whole day, then you’re right. My head hurts, my stomach hates me and the warm sun really doesn’t help the situation,” he groaned a bit and I smiled.

“I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?” I smiled at him.

“No, no. I just wanted to apologize for yesterday. I remember bits and pieces of it and I remember telling you..”

“That you love me? Go on,” I smiled.

“Yeah. I wanted to apologize for my behavior and for making you feel uncomfortable. And did you tuck me in?” he chuckled.

“Oh, Liam, it’s completely okay. I quite liked drunk Liam. He is pretty funny and yes, I did tuck you in. You know how hard it is to tuck in an unconscious grown man?” I chuckled back.

We both shared a few laughs and he kissed my knuckles again because everyone was gathering again – it was time for the suitors to bake the pies.

“Will I see you later?” he asked.

“You bet!” I smiled back at him and joined the other girls. I kept glancing back at Liam. _My Liam_. I loved sharing little moments with him, even for minutes at a time because I really felt it in my heart, we were meant to be. This felt right.


	13. As Sweet as Apple Pie

As I turned to face the Queen, I had this uncomfortable feeling again. Like I was being watched. It was unsettling and I kept looking back a lot.

“Everything okay?” Hana whispered to me and I shook my head.

“I’m not sure, I feel strange. Like I’m being watched or something,” I confessed.

“Lots of people are watching you, Ashley. Especially since the whole dramatic thing with Drake, you’ve never put out a statement and they’re curious. I’m sure it’s nothing,” she smiled sweetly and I nodded my head. It was my paranoia getting to me. Nothing was going on here, people were just curious. But why did it feel like something more?

“Greetings ladies! I’m glad to see every single one of you again. Today, as per tradition, I’m going to divide you into two teams to partake in the apple pie baking competition. The team captains are Hana and Madeleine. Ladies, please select your teams,” the Queen smiled at everyone and people cheered. Hana even blushed. She knew the event was televised and was probably happy that her parents will see that she was being chosen by the Queen herself. From what I’ve gathered from Hana, I knew that the Lee family was very strict and they will not tolerate failure. It made me a bit scared for Hana – she didn’t deserve the treatment she got. Was that why she was so sweet – so no one else felt that way when they were with her?

“I choose Lady Kiara,” Madeleine said. _Of course_ , she’d pick first without hesitation. I sighed and then saw Hana looking at me.

“I choose Lady Ashley,” Hana smiled and I smiled back. I knew she was going to choose me, but it was still gratifying to be chosen before Olivia was. She stood there pouting.

“Lady Penelope,” Madeleine nodded at Penelope who ran to her like a happy puppy.

“Thank God I’m not chosen last!” she said happily.

“I’m last, seriously?” Olivia rolled her eyes and a chuckle escaped my mouth. She looked at me angrily and I smiled back at her. Was she really surprised at the outcome?

The Queen walked up to our team and smiled.

“I wish you luck, ladies,” the Queen looked at all three of us and stopped when she looked at me. It felt like she was trying to tell me something. She didn’t feel condescending, but rather… worried. I smiled at her.

“We’re going to bake you the best apple pie you’ve had in a long while,” I smiled confidently at her.

“I’m counting on it,” she nodded and slowly walked up to Madeleine’s team.

“Did you just seriously say that to the Queen?” Olivia sneered and her anger only made me chuckle again.

“What can I say, I’m a people pleaser, unlike some people,” I smiled at her.

“Let the great Cordonian bake-off begin!” as the Queen said those words, me and the other girls raced to the outdoor kitchen, where baskets of apples were already laid before us.

I started peeling and cutting apples with Hana while Olivia was trying to find some ingredients that would make our pie stand out. When I looked over at her, she was holding two identical shakers in her hand.

“What have you got there?” I asked and when she heard my voice, she groaned.

“Doesn’t concern you at all, commoner,” Olivia said through gritted teeth.

“Olivia don’t,” I looked at her scoldingly. Was she really trying to ruin Madeleine’s pie?

“I have no clue what you’re trying to imply, I’m simply looking for some cinnamon mix,” she smiled sweetly.

“Olivia!” I whispered angrily and she groaned quietly again.

“I’m just trying to help!”

“The only help we actually need is you helping us bake,” I said. I was disappointed, to be honest. I didn’t think she would stoop so low. I watched her as she put the shakers back and walked back to our side. I felt a watchful eye on me and as I turned my head, I saw Madeleine staring at me. Maybe she was the one watching me previously? She nodded at me, as if saying thank you, but she didn’t even smile. _Did she know what Olivia was up to?_ I nodded back and cursed Olivia in my head. Why did she have to be such a child sometimes? She had more tantrums than Sarah ever had in her life. Maybe Sarah will turn out like Olivia and have her tantrums at a grown up age. I shuddered at the thought. Now _that_ would be something.

When I walked back to my team, Hana was making the dough and Olivia was just staring at her.

“Why don’t you help?” I rolled my eyes.

“Why? Hana’s doing a great job with the pie,” Olivia replied, obviously disinterested in the conversation.

“I’d actually like some help with the filling,” Hana smiled at her.

“Olivia, teamwork is key to winning the competition, you know.”

“Well, I did have an idea…” Olivia started.

“Yes?”

“Well, you know how foods paired together do taste better? I suggest we should try serving our apple pie with some ice-cream. I happened to see some in the freezer here. And I do know that the Queen loves ice-cream,” Olivia smiled, finally. Me and Hana shared a look and smiled back at her. Hana nodded, encouraging her and Olivia stood there, proud of herself. Gosh, she was really a child but that only made me giggle. Now I knew how to handle her.

Hana decided to give our apple pie a little flair and designed a Cordonian seal on it.

“Hana, it’s wonderful!” I smiled and she beamed.

“I have to admit, this certainly gives us an edge over Madeleine’s team,” Olivia smiled. When we finally put our pie in the oven, I felt happy. The pie looked good, Hana was delighted, Madeleine was content that Olivia was handled, even Olivia cracked a smile or two when me and Hana told her a few jokes. Everything seemed to work out. When we finally pulled our pie out of the oven, Olivia put a scoop of vanilla ice cream next to it and sprinkled it with coconut shavings.

“Are coconut shavings a good idea, since we have an apple pie?” Hanna asked nervously.

“Trust me,” Olivia said and we did. We didn’t really have a choice since she already sprinkled the coconut shavings on there and there wasn’t much ice cream left. We just had to hope that it would be a good flavor combo. When I looked over Madeleine’s team, they were a bit chaotic. The only thing I understood was that Penelope screwed up something and the others tried to fix it. _Yikes!_ I felt sorry for Penelope, I didn’t want to be on Madeleine’s bad side – it didn’t seem easy to deal with her even if you’re on her good side.

When the Queen was finally back to examine our pies, I felt nervous. I knew it was a good pie and that we did a good job, but I also didn’t know what Madeleine had in mind for hers and that was what worried me. Also, the Queen was good friends with Madeleine. Maybe she’d choose her just because? Of course, I had a feeling she wouldn’t, but it didn’t slip my mind for a second that she would favor Madeleine over me, if it would come to it.

“Your pie looks wonderful, Madeleine. Simple, easy on the eyes and the texture seems good. Could you cut me a little slice?” the Queen asked and Madeleine nodded.

“Of course, Your Majesty,” she said and handed her a paper plate with the slice. She took a small bite and looked thoughtful.

“The cinnamon is a bit too much but other than that, it’s a great pie,” the Queen smiled politely and you could see disappointment in Madeleine’s eyes. She turned to look at Penelope who was pouting like a puppy. _Poor Penelope._ I was even more thankful that I stopped Olivia – they didn’t need even more sabotaging. And it was cinnamon, could it really be that bad?

“Now let me take a look at what you’ve created here, Lady Hana,” the Queen gestured and Hana brought her our pie. My hands were shaking so I crossed my arms, so no one could tell. Especially since the press was taking pictures and videos – I didn’t want them to know that I was nervous.

“Oh, what’s this?” the Queen smiled at the ice-cream.

“We thought that you’d like to pair up the apple pie with some ice-cream,” Hana smiled nervously.

“What a great idea! I’m surprised no one before you ladies has thought of this,” she smiled at us gratefully and we all shared an excited look. I was just hoping that she’d like the pie as much as she liked our presentation.

“Oh, and you’ve also added the Cordonian seal to the crust. That is amazing, who did this?” Queen Regina looked at all three of us and Hana stepped forward.

“I did, I hope it’s not too much,” she smiled gracefully. The Queen chuckled.

“Nothing’s too much here, dear,” she replied and took the paper plate Hana handed to her. Hana made sure to put a small slice and lots of ice cream on the plate. As the Queen took a bite of the apple pie and put the ice cream in her mouth, she closed her eyes and smiled.

“That was mouth-watering. Amazing. I’ve never had a pie quite like this, and now I see how much I’ve been missing out. Could I get the recipe, ladies?” the Queen asked and we all chuckled. I thanked the universe that Olivia was on our side on this one – we trusted her and she really did come through.

“After not much deliberating, I’ve come to a conclusion. I’ve been weighing the strengths and weaknesses on both sides and I officially declare Lady Hana’s team the winner!” the Queen announced and smiled proudly at us. We smiled back, very proud of our achievement.

“Thank you, Your Highness,” Hana bowed to her excitedly.

“We’ll have a little evening picnic set up for everyone shortly, I hope every single of you will be in attendence. And I hope you will enjoy tomorrow, because it’s going to be a big day – the Apple Queen will be announced!” the Queen smiled and everyone cheered.

As the Queen stepped off the podium, she approached me and I smiled awkwardly at her. I had no clue what she wanted to talk about so when she asked if I could walk with her, I was surprised. Wasn’t this the time she usually walked off with Madeleine, talking and laughing? I put on my brave face and walked beside her.

“To be honest, Lady Ashley, you’ve surprised me again and again. The way you compose yourself at court and with your daughter in public, says a lot about you as a person. And so I was shocked to learn that Prince Liam’s commoner friend Drake has left court and see those atrocious videos of Prince Liam punching Drake. And you standing behind them, trying to stop them. This is not acceptable behavior, especially, from someone of his stature and a lot of other people had their concerns if he is even fit to be a king, if he acts this way. We were concerned, too. Maybe he’s not ready to bear the responsibilites if he acts out this way towards people he’s known his entire life? If you don’t mind telling me – what happened that day on the beach? Prince Liam, of course, never told us exactly what happened and refused to talk about it so I wanted to go straight to the source. His statement that he put out also vas very vague… Is there any truths to what has the press been saying?” she asked and I felt myself holding my breath. Of course, this is what she wanted to talk about. I was a fool to think otherwise. Other people having concerns? Those were probably the stuffy nobles Drake talked my ear off about. I sighed quietly so that the Queen wouldn’t hear me.

“To be honest, I’m not really comfortable speaking about it,” I confessed. I really wasn’t – especially when I was cornered like this.

“I understand. But you also must understand – this is a very serious situation and we don’t take violence lightly. America may view things differently, but I was shocked to see everything with my own eyes in those videos,” she sighed and she knew that I was desperate for approval. In my head, I applauded her guilt-tripping technique.

“The press speculations are false, I didn’t know Drake beforehand. The first time we met was at Prince Liam’s bachelor party. Drake had a bit too much to drink at the beach and he confessed something that he shouldn’t have. Not in front of Liam, not in front of me, knowing… _my situation_. And that made Liam.. _Prince Liam_ very frustrated and angry,” I corrected myself and looked at Queen Regina.

“So the commoner boy had feelings for you and he said it in front of Liam, didn’t he?” she smiled at me and it stung. It stung the way she said _commoner_ , as if Drake had nothing else going for him. And that was probably how she will see me if Liam doesn’t pick me. Just a commoner who tried and didn’t succeed. I thought she genuinely liked me but I guess I was wrong. It certainly wasn’t the first or last time I was hurt like this, it just stung. I felt foolish to think that the Queen of Cordonia would approve of me vying for her step-son’s hand. She didn’t see me as a suitable successor, most likely.

“Yes, the _commoner boy_ did have feelings,” I said through gritted teeth and smiled politely back at her.

“Oh dear, have I upset you?” she looked at me intently. I didn’t know what to answer at first so there was a minute of silence between us. Should I be honest? Should I lie? She was the Queen after all. _Fuck it, I don’t have anything to lose, have I?_

“Actually yes, you did by calling Drake a commoner boy, knowing full well that I wasn’t born in nobility, too. It made me feel less than and I don’t think anyone should feel or be treated that way – not me, not Drake…” I looked back at her, awaiting her response. She… smiled? The Queen smiled! What was happening?

“To be honest, I quite enjoy your honesty, Lady Ashley. It’s refreshing. And to clear things up, I really don’t mind your or other commoner presence in court. I’m quite taken by you, you are a magnificent young lady and your hardships in life have only made you stronger. I’m just preparing for what’s to come if you actually get to be the next queen of Cordonia. It may go by smoothly at first, but it will be hard later on, especially if you have no heir since you already have a child. People will wonder if this was the real reason you married Prince Liam – to make your own child the Royal Heir,” she smiled at me and melted all my doubts away. So this was all another test for what’s to come?

“That’s just silly, I didn’t even know Liam before. How could I have planned this? ” I answered quietly, quite shocked by her revelation. I did know people would treat me differently than other suitors – but I didn’t expect that it would be to this extent.

“Do you think the context matters to the press? All they see in us are juicy stories. We’re nobles and of course, people like to speculate, that’s never going to change. That’s why I’ve been so bold, to see how you’ll handle my little jabs and insults. If you can’t handle me, how will you be able to endure years of the press dragging you and your beloved through the mud? I’ve quite enjoyed Drake and his antics and was sad to learn that he had left, ” the Queen said quietly. Every sentence that came out of her mouth sounded sincere. It calmed me down – she wasn’t against me, she was _with_ me. Helping me through this.

“Thank you for your kind words, Your Majesty, ” as I said the words, the Queen nodded at me.

“I hope you do enjoy the festivities, I have a lot of things to do to prepare for all of the events that are about to come. I hope I’ll see you tomorrow, when we choose the Apple Queen,” she said and took my hands into hers. I bowed to say goodbye. When she left, I felt like I was walking on air. She approved! She approved of me, the commoner girl!

While I was walking on air, I accidentally bumped into someone.

“I’m so sorry!” I quickly apologized and when I looked up, I saw a familiar face. I couldn’t place his name but I knew I had seen him before.

“Lady Ashley! It’s me, Tariq. We met at Liam’s bachelor party,” he re-introduced himself and then I remembered. The first time I saw him, I thought he was a jerk. Maybe he wasn’t one and it was all in my head?

“Oh yes! Hi, how are you?” I smiled at him politely.

“Very nice. I hope you like Applewood Manor, I have recently acquired it and plan to renovate it,” he took my hand into his and brushed his lips against my knuckles – like Liam does. It didn’t feel as good, in fact, it felt a bit out of place since no one else did that so I just smiled awkwardly at him.

“Oh, this manor belongs to you?”

“Of course, it’s as glamorous as my lifestyle. The King let me purchase it from him finally, since they’re here only once or twice a year. Someone needs to keep an eye on it,” he winked.

“Thank you for letting all of the Royal Court stay here. Are we too much to handle?” I acted like I was interested in what he was saying and tried to think of ways to escape this conversation. It made me feel uncomfortable and his cologne was too musky for me to handle.

“Oh, it’s no bother. I enjoy having guests around – it makes the Manor feel more alive. Would you care for a stroll in the _exotic_ gardens?” his voice lowered when he said “exotic” and that made me feel uneasy. Luckily, Maxwell came looking for me.

“There you are! Hey Tariq!” Maxwell said as he walked towards us.

“Hello old friend! Well, I have other business to attend to but, lady Ashley, if you ever want to have a look around, don’t hesitate to ask. I will gladly show you _everything_ ,” his voice purred as he said the words and I smiled uncomfortably back at him. I did not understand what was happening so I turned to Maxwell.

“What was that?” I asked when Tariq was out of earshot.

“Oh boy, Tariq wants you,” Maxwell giggled so I punched him playfully.

“Not funny. Doesn’t he know that I’m here after Liam?” I rolled my eyes.

“I don’t think he cares, _old friend_ ,” Maxwell said and winked at me. I punched him again.

“Stooop! His voice is creepy,” I chuckled.

“I know. He has always been this way, though. Even as a child he was kind of creepy, also very spoiled and used to being bailed out by his parents. He’s used to getting what he wants,” Maxwell sighed.

“So spoiled?” I smiled at him.

“Tariq? Definitely spoiled and he wants you,” Maxwell winked and both of us laughed.

 _Well, he definitely wasn’t going to get me,_ I thought.

“Why do you hang around with him?”

“I don’t, Liam and Drake usually have to, since Tariq and his parents are friends with the King,” Maxwell sighed. The King? _Really?_ I furrowed my brow and made Maxwell laugh.

“Why would they tolerate someone like Tariq?” I sighed.

“They usually don’t, his parents are delightful, they usually handle the business side of things but Tariq is the one walking around, acting like he owns everything. To be honest, he’s not even a good business man,” Maxwell sighed. Tariq really seemed like _a piece of work_.

When we walked back, the picnic had already started and all of them were already enjoying the cupcakes. The Queen and the King had a speech and thanked Tariq and his parents. When I saw his grin again, I shuddered. I did not like overconfidant people. When Liam got onto the stage to thank the people for coming, he winked at me and it made me feel like the most important person there. I also had the most silly grin on my face.

The picnic was fun, we stuffed our faces with tiny little cakes and danced the calories away.

“Wow, that Tariq is sure a hottie!” Rachel smiled when we walked back to our room.

“Whaaat? Tariq? Noo,” I looked at her weirdly. We sure had different tastes.

“Was Tariq the one in the gray suit? ” Sarah inserted herself into the conversation.

“Yes!”

“He looked old,” she said and all three of us laughed.

The next morning, Bertrand ran into our room and made sure that we were all ready for the big event.

“Do we have to wear these ugly dresses?” Sarah shook her head at the dresses Bertrand brought. They were traditional Cordonian peasant dresses, white on the top, colorful at the bottom and even had an apron over the skirt.

“Lady Sarah, I’m just going to ignore your comment. I don’t think they’re ugly and I think they will help you win the favor of the people, because you’ll be wearing a traditional peasant dress. It makes you one with the Cordonians!” he insisted and I sighed. I didn’t want to wear it, too, but Bertrand was adamant. He even had matching headbands picked out for us.

“Will Anita like this?” Sarah asked and Bertrand nodded.

“Anita will most definitely like this, she’s a fan of Cordonia’s traditional clothing, you know,” Bertrand addressed Sarah. She took a moment to think but then nodded. She was really fond of Anita and Bertrand has been using it in his favor ever since. If Sarah didn’t want to do something, he used Anita as an excuse for everything. Of course, he did ask for permission from me beforehand and I allowed it only for this trip because I really didn’t want any tantrums right now – it was tiring enough without them.

When all three of us walked out of the girls room, Bertrand clapped his hands.

“You all look positively radiant!” he exclaimed and we chuckled because we knew we didn’t look “radiant” at all, but if Bertrand was handing out compliments, I might aswell enjoy them.

“Wow, you look … different!” Hana said when she saw me and I laughed out loud. It was hilarious how nice she was trying to be, despite the dress being horrendous. Hana herself, of course, was wearing a gorgeous silver silk dress with a slit. She looked like a princess while I was… the peasant. Quite literally.

“Good thing I’m not the only one wearing this,” I pointed out to Sarah and Rachel to her.

“Oh my, you’re all different!” Hana chuckled and so did I. People were starting to gather so we walked up next to the podium. Olivia was the last one to join us and Madeleine gave her an icy stare.

“Welcome ladies and gentlement to our annual Apple Blossom Festival! As we all know, our festival symbolizes the growth vital to keeping our small nation thriving. Now, as per tradition, we will honor one distinguished and best dressed lady as our Apple Queen. This is ceremonial and it’s for the people to decide. Last year it was our own Madeleine,” The Queen turned to Madeleine who had the biggest smile plastered to her face.

“It was such an honor!” she smiled proudly. I bet it was.

“As for this year… Citizens of Cordonia, who do you wish to honor with the title?” as the Queen asked, there were many murmurs in the crowd. I could hear a few Ashley’s, a few Hana’s and Olivia’s being shouted but then something amazing happened.

Maxwell started chanting my name, with Rachel and Sarah and then even Bertrand joined in. Other people were quick to join the chant and soon all I could hear was my name. It felt strange, to be honest, but good. My name overpowered any other chants that there were and the Queen nodded.

“As we can hear, we have a clear winner. Congratulations lady Ashley, you will be our new Apple Queen!” she smiled and all I could do was look at the reporters who were talking over each other, trying to be the first ones delivering the news.

“Are you ready for your coronation?” the Queen asked and I nodded so I took a few steps closer to her. She handed me an apple-shaped scepter.

“Lady Ashley, I pronounce you the Queen of the Apples. Long live the Apple Queen!” she said seriously. I wanted to laugh but I didn’t. The event seemed silly to me but I knew that Cordonians took their apples very seriously.

“Speech!” I could hear Rachel’s and Maxwell’s voices through the crowd and smiled at them.

“Thank you so much for this high esteemed honor. I will treat it with utmost respect and I will not disappoint,” I smiled at the crowd and everyone cheered.

“Now you and your selected court members will ride in the big apple wagon and hand out all the apples to the people,” the Queen smiled at me.

“How many can I choose?”

“No more than five.”

“I pick Sarah, Rachel, Maxwell, Liam and Hana,” I smiled at her and waited for “my court” to assemble. Sarah looked at the crowd nervously while everyone was snapping pictures.

“Don’t be afraid, we get to ride in the big wagon!” I smiled at Sarah and she nodded. We walked to it hand-in-hand and Liam helped us get on it. We were driving in it and handing people apples, what could be better? A lady came up dangerously close to the wagon.

“How does it feel like, knowing that Sarah could be the Royal Heir?” the lady asked. I sighed, she was a reporter. Of course.

“None of your business,” Hana threw an apple her way and the lady looked confused. I smiled, I didn’t expect that from our sweet Hana. Sarah hugged me and I realized that she wasn’t used to being in the spotlight. The first time was probably exciting but still, she was only five years old. Of course, it was too much for a five year old. It was too much even for me sometimes. When we finally exited the wagon, the Queen and Madeleine were waiting for us. I quickly planted a tree and we exchanged pleasantries.

“Now with the Apple Queen chosen, we can all enjoy the festivities!” the Queen said.

“Finally another party!” Maxwell said, bumping his fists in the air and I giggled.

“Will we have another party tomorrow, too?” Sarah asked.

“Noo, tomorrow’s the “Royal Hunt!”” Maxwell airquoted.

“What does it mean?”

“We’re not going to have a hunt tomorrow, but rather a race,” Maxwell smiled at Sarah.

“But why isn’t it the Royal Race? Why does it have to be called a Royal Hunt?”

“You got me there, kiddo,” he shrugged.

“Maxwell, would you like to take Hana, Rachel and Sarah for some ice-cream?” Liam asked, winking at me. I nodded.

“Oh yeah! I totally would. C’mon guys!” Maxwell started dancing and pushing everyone towards the ice-cream cart. I noticed him and Hana exchanging a few flirty smiles. Now I was curious. Have they started dating? I knew they liked each other, but what was happening? Was there going to be another royal wedding next to Liam’s?

“Maxwell, where are you going?” Bertrand demanded.

“For some well deserved ice cream,” Maxwell gestured towards me and Liam and made an awkward wink. Bertrand got the message and excused himself, too.

Liam quickly took my hand and we walked towards the orchard.

“I love your dress,” Liam chuckled and I pushed him playfully.

“No, you don’t!” I replied, smiling.

“Oh believe me, you could wear a potato sack and you’d still be beautiful,” he smiled and as I giggled, I knew he didn’t take me away just to talk about how I looked, so I waited for him to start.

“So I talked to Olivia.”

“Oh yeah? How is she?”

“Devastated…” Liam sighed.

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“She told me the full story, from her perspective. That she loved us both but since being with me was her childhood dream, she couldn’t give up on me so easily. That’s why when she found out that I was going to have this competition, she had to join and at least try. Olivia thought I might’ve felt the same about her but when I explained that I’ve only experienced these feelings with one other person…” he looked at me and I couldn’t help but blush.

“So what now?”

“I’m not sure, she tried to get ahold of Drake, to talk to him, but she couldn’t, he’s been inactive on his social media platforms and his phone is off, so we have no clue if and when he is coming back,” Liam sighed.

“He said he wouldn’t miss your coronation,” I patted his back and he smiled.

“Things happen, maybe he changed his mind. Maybe he realized what a horrible friend I’ve been.”

“Don’t. I think he’s hurting and it’s good that he is – when he stops and realizes what’s important to him, he will come back. So is Olivia still competing for your hand?” I smiled at him, desperately wanting to know the answer.

“Officially, yes because she has to but she said she won’t try to do any more harm. I do care about her deeply but never in a romantic way. She only said she wished she realized it sooner… And that she wants to apologize to Drake, but he isn’t available, ” he sighed. At least Olivia wanted to apologize to _someone_.

He took my hand in his and we started slowly walking around the beautiful scenery. It looked like the trees went on for miles. You could easily get lost in here if you wanted to or play hide-and-seek.

“If only people could communicate better,” I sighed.

“I know, everything would be so much easier,” he agreed.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

“Very nervous. Can you believe that I’m going to be a King? Me? “

“Yes, I can. I can’t imagine anyone better suited for the role,” I encouraged him.

“Well, since the beach incident, my father and other noble families have been doubting my rule,” Liam sighed.

“Is your dad changing his mind?”

“No. But he’s putting more pressure on me and telling me how important it is to find the right Queen,” he sighed.

“Well, you better find a really good one,” I smiled at him.

“I think I already did,” he said, looking into my eyes. I froze. _He did_?

“Oh, are you sure?” I asked shyly.

“Pretty sure,” he kept looking at me and took a step forward. He pressed his lips softly on mine and I kissed him back. He cupped my cheek and started getting more passionate, I pushed my body closer to his.

“Ashley,” he moaned quietly.

When our lips parted, both of us were breathless. I started laughing – we were acting like teenagers, stealing moments inbetween and making out.

“What?”

“Nothing, this just reminds me of my teenager days,” I smiled.

“Me too,” he agreed.

“Whaat, did you also sneak around?” I widened my eyes.

“Of course, if I didn’t do that with Drake, my life would have been even more dull than it already was,” he sighed and I nodded. _Of course,_ Drake helped him escape the palace life.

“So are you feeling better?”

“Much better,” he smiled and squeezed my hand. We talked a little before joining the others. They all seemed to have a great time and when it was time to return to the Manor, we were walked back by Liam. When we went up the stairs, we noticed Tariq talking on the phone.

“Oh, lady Ashley, isn’t your room on the other side of the wing?” Tariq asked when he hung up his phone. I looked at him suspiciously. Did he arrange this?

“Oh no, that room is super creepy. I’m sleeping in the same room the girls are,” I answered with a polite smile on my face.

“You didn’t like the room? Or what was the problem with it?” he was eyeing me.

“I don’t appreciate being put on the other side of my loved ones,” I looked at him angrily. His questions lead me to believe he was the culprit. But what was the point?

“I’ll get to the bottom of this, don’t worry,” he smiled and slowly walked away. I shuddered. Something clearly was suspicious about this man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! I hope you're ready for what's to come! :))


	14. Hunting for Love

The next morning there was a lot of knocking at our door but we were so tired out from the previous night… I was having nightmares and paranoid dreams, and finally managed to get some peaceful sleep so I really didn’t want to open the door at all. So I didn’t. Me and the girls ignored the knocking.

“RISE AND SHIIIIINE!” Maxwell let himself in and we all groaned in unison.

“Lovely to see you too, ladies!” Maxwell chuckled and opened the curtains of our room.

“Maxwell, how are you up?” Rachel’s tired voice echoed through the room.

“It’s because of Bertrand but I’m starting to love waking up early. So get up and let’s go eat some apple tarts for breakfast!” he said excitedly.

“Apple tarts? AGAIN?” Rachel groaned.

“You did not just say that!” Maxwell gasped and I felt him was sitting on mine and Sarah’s bed.

“Stop tickling me! I’m up, I’m up!” I heard Sarah give up. I shuddered because I knew I was going to be woken up next. If he is going to tickle me, I swear to God…

“Hey sleepyhead, stop pretending I didn’t wake you already,” Maxwell teased. I kept my silence. I loved sleeping in. It was the best, why would anyone want to seperate me from my bed just when the sleep was getting so good?

“Mommy, please wake up!” Sarah shouted and I groaned. Now I had to wake up, whenever I heard her voice calling my name, it was my natural instinct to wake up, it has been like that ever since she was born. I opened my eyes slowly and took in the luxurious room. I’ve never been able to appreciate it’s beauty before.

“C’mon, we get to go horse riding today!” Maxwell pleaded. Wait, what?

“Maxwell, did you just say we get to go horse riding?” I smiled when I looked at him. He nodded excitedly.

“Well, none of us know how to ride a horse,” I said quietly and I could see him getting more and more panicky. His eyes widened and he was staring at all of us.

“What? Why? Why have you never told me that?” he asked.

“You’ve never asked or told us that any of the events included horseback riding!”

“Didn’t I tell you yesterday?” he asked.

“If you did, I didn’t hear you, so I’ll say… No?”

“You’ve never ridden a horse? Ever? Never ever? But you’re from New York!” he exclaimed.

“Exactly! We never had any horses just lying around to ride, you know,” I shook my head.

“B-but! There’s a race today and you have to win! You’ve been having the best winning streak!” Maxwell looked into my eyes, clearly panicked.

“You can’t win them all,” I sighed.

“Bertrand will be so angry..”

“Let him, he’s always either angry or preachy, it’s not like he will be any different now,” I smiled, trying to encourage him not to be afraid.

“But.. it’s Bertrand!” he sighed. We all nodded. We knew how grim he was going to be so we rushed our breakfast and avoided all of the other noble ladies. He wasn’t going to be excited either way so when we broke the news to him, he just nodded. He wasn’t even fazed at this point, just told us to go to the stables to figure out the riding situation since I couldn’t ride by myself, or rather, refused to ride a horse on my own, since I was deathly afraid of riding one alone. We also got our riding forms handed to us – jackets, pants, boots and even the helmet were in a dirty brown color that did not flatter any of us.

“Children do it on their own!” Bertrand protested when we were all in our riding gear, next to the stables.

“I’m not as fearless as children are, ” I smiled back at him. I was adamant – I was not riding a horse alone, I had never done it and could never even participate in a race for a chance to win if I didn’t have someone else actually holding down the reigns. To be honest, I was really afraid of horses or rather – falling from one because when I was a child, I watched the news with my parents and they mentioned that a girl had fell from her horse and gotten amnesia and afterwards died from the injuries she sustained. Yes, I knew that it didn’t happen to everybody and that it was highly unlikely to happen to me but still, I never wanted to risk it and since then I avoided all contact with horses I could which was kind of easy since there aren’t a lot of places in New York filled with horse riding lessons anyway.

“You don’t even know how to mount a horse?” Bertrand raised an eyebrow and sighed when I shook my head to answer negatively.

It amused me how frustrated Bertrand got over this. After a while Bertrand made riding arrangements to ride with Rachel while Maxwell had to ride with Sarah – everyone except for Rachel liked the outcome. She groaned and Bertrand told her that she was no prize either. Honestly, if he was as funny as this everytime he told us to do something, he would be A LOT more bearable.

“I have no clue what to do with you, though, Lady Ashley,” Bertrand raised his eyebrow at me.

“Maybe we could ask another lady from court to ride with her?” Maxwell smiled.

“I don’t know – we’d be asking for a lady to purposefully lose this race since their horse won’t be as fast as the others,” he sighed.

“I can do it,” Olivia said when she walked into the stables. She looked like she just stepped out of a riding manual – she had the full gear and she looked good in it.

“You can?” I gasped. Would she? I mean, WHY would she?

“Of course, I’d gladly take you under my wing,” she smiled at me. That smile was unsettling because I knew she was trying to be sweet but it didn’t suit her. Her smirk was way more suitable.

“Well, it’s settled then! We humbly accept your help, Duchess Olivia. We appreciate all the help we can get. Now, I’ll go inform the King. We all know he doesn’t like to be surprised,” Bertrand shook hands with her.

“I’m always glad to help House Beaumont,” she nodded gracefully. A few weeks ago this would’ve been unimaginable but right now I had to believe it – Olivia Nevrakis wanted to help me. Woah, how the tides have turned…

“Why are you doing this?” I asked her when we were left alone.

“Isn’t it obvious? Other ladies finally have a chance to win an event, without you or me in the way,” she sighed. I never even thought about it – I’ve actually won all of the events I’ve participated in, so the other ladies didn’t have a much of the chance to impress the Prince.

“Shouldn’t we get going?” I asked.

“Not yet,” she said and turned to me. I raised my eyebrow. What was happening? With one eye, I could see others mounting their horses and getting ready.

“I’m sorry. I’ve been awful and I feel terrible for it. I’ve never been good with emotions or being… soft like you are, so I just got insanely jealous and crazy. I shouldn’t have treated you that way. Or anyone,” she looked as Hana walked in in her full riding gear. She, of course, looked impeccable, she even had a crest sewn in front of her dark blue riding jacket.

“Woah Hana! You sure look nice,” I smiled and she blushed.

“Cant wait for us to finally go horseback riding!” she said excitedly.

“I’ll be riding with Olivia,” I replied quickly, as if defending myself.

“Why? Do you need a horse to ride with?”

“No, she’s afraid,” Olivia butted in.

“Afraid? Of what? These sweet things?” Hana smiled as she pet one of the horses in the stable. I nodded.

“I’m not very comfortable riding one on my own, since I’ve never even been on a horse,” I smiled awkwardly because I did feel silly. I was not ready to face my fears just yet.

“That’s understandable. Want me to ride with you?” her offer was very nice and sincere. I wanted to say yes so badly but I didn’t want to ruin her chances of winning the race. Or to show off her family. I knew her parents would be furious if she’d take me on as a burden.

“She’ll ride with me, you can go on,” Olivia looked at Hana and they both shared an awkward smile.

“Are you sure?” Hana looked at me and I nodded.

“Of course, she’s sure!” Olivia said and Hana took her horse out of the stable.

“See you at the race!” she smiled and walked past us quickly. I had a feeling I hurt Hana’s feelings by riding with Olivia but I tried to do the complete opposite. I sighed. There was no pleasing everyone, was there?

Olivia led her horse outside and a servant changed her regular saddle to a two-seater saddle. While the servant was changing the saddles, I looked at the creature whose back I was about to ride. The horse had a black coat and it looked properly groomed. Olivia even snuck a flower behind its ear.

“What did you name your horse, Olivia?” I asked, curious what kind of name would Olivia pick.

“Isabella,” she smiled at her horse and pet it. Olivia’s facial features got softer whenever she looked at her horse.

“That’s a pretty name,” I smiled at her and she nodded right back.

“A pretty name for a pretty horse,” she kept petting it until we were the last ones left.

“Olivia, shouldn’t we be going?”

“Oh, calm down, I was just trying to save you the embarrassment of mounting a horse if you don’t know how to – the sight can get ridiculous and I wouldn’t want you to get ridiculed,” she sighed and I nodded. Wow, she was thinking of how to help me?

“I’ll mount the horse first, so I can ride it properly, you’ll sit at the back and hold onto me,” she instructed and I nodded.

Olivia mounted her horse quickly and efficiently but when I tried to mount it, it didn’t look nearly as gracious. But when I did, I was proud of myself – at least I was doing something right!

“Hurrah, you didn’t take nearly as much time as I thought you would,” she said and I just knew she was smirking.

“Hey, I’m just proud I did it!” I smiled and held onto her for my dear life. When the horse started to move, I wanted to scream, it felt weird and I was scared I was going to fall.

“Relax, the horse can feel it if you’re tense, everything’s okay, just hold onto me and you’ll do great, I promise,” Olivia coached me through the fear. Who would’ve guessed she could be so soft under that thick skin of hers? While she was coaching me through this, I was also practicing the breathing exercises I did while I was in labor. They helped relieve the stress and when I felt I could breathe again, we went up a steep hill. The horse was gaining speed and my fingers pressed on Olivia’s side again but this time it was a lot harder than before.

The scenery was beautiful, there was a tiny town beneath us and the people that walked around looked like tiny ants. The town was right next to a beautiful forest and in that moment I was in awe of the nature. I’ve grown up in such a large city and had never known the beauty outside. And how different it was. I still thought New York City was beautiful but this beauty… It was uncomparable. It felt like I was meant to experience this, to be here and for that I was grateful.

After a while I heard chatter and then I saw everyone before us – we finally managed to keep up. I knew that if Olivia had ridden by herself, she would’ve made the horse go much faster but I knew she controlled the horse’s pace because of me. Or should I say – because everytime I was afraid we were going too fast, my fingers were digging into her sides. I tried not to do that – so that she could enjoy the ride, too, but I couldn’t – it was an involuntary action.

“Ah, there you are, ladies!” the King saw us and approached us with his own horse.

“Sorry, it’s all my fault,” I said and the King shook his head.

“Nonsense! I understand, not everyone is meant for horseback riding. I’m just glad your daughter doesn’t take after you,” he smiled and pointed at Sarah who was on sitting behind Maxwell and excitedly chatting with him.

“Did she enjoy the ride?” I asked.

“Enjoyed it? She asked if she could participate in the race herself,” he laughed whole-heartedly. I smiled. That did sound like my Sarah – always brave and ready to face anything her way.

“Now, now, I just wanted to remind everyone that the trails we follow are the same ones our ancestors followed, when going for the annual “Royal Hunt”. Hunting here has been forbidden for many years and for many reasons so we won’t focus on that tradition but I we started a different one. A horseback race for all of the ladies in court that are vying for my son’s affections. Duchess Olivia and Lady Ashley will be riding the same horse, so if they actually win, we’ll give that win to the Duchess, of course. Now, please, get into position, ladies. Prince Liam is already at the finish line next to the feast, and whoever gets first place, will get to sit next to him and share a private conversation,” the King smiled and gathered all of the ladies horses in a straight line.

“My horse isn’t nearly as fast as yours, Madeleine. It’s not fair, ” I heard Penelope pout.

“Then you should’ve thought about that before, Lady Penelope,” I heard Madeleines cold voice tell her off. She also seemed cold and closed off but there was something about her. I felt like she was mostly misunderstood.

“Ready, set aaand go!” the King said and I could hear all of the horses neigh. Hana manoeuvred her horse with such poise and grace, she was in the lead. I wasn’t surprised – especially knowing Hana’s extensive background. She was definitely skilled. I didn’t want to know how many skills she mastered while trying to please her parents… It was probably a VERY big list.

Olivia gained speed and we passed Penelope and Kiara with ease. Kiara looked annoyed and pulled the reigns on her horse a lot harder than she had to. The horse made a very high-pitched sound and it sounded very painful. I sighed, I felt so bad for the horse. If I had to race on my own, I’d probably be the last one there.

I almost got used to the speed we were at but then Isabella started gaining even more speed, so I held onto Olivia for my dear life.

“Ouch!” Olivia groaned and I apologized. The horse was going so fast, I actually thought I’d fall and she wouldn’t even notice. Or would notice and still would go on, leaving me here. Maybe that was her plan all along? You’re being paranoid, no one’s leaving you here, I told myself and took a big breath.

After a few minutes I could already see the finish line – Hana was already there, talking to Liam and Madeleine was just about to cross it.

“Fuck,” Olivia muttered under her breath. She didn’t talk a lot during our ride and I kind of expected that she would – I wanted to actually talk to her, get to know her better but she chose silence instead. Maybe she didn’t know how to initiate the conversation?

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I knew we weren’t going to win anyway but I hoped for a second place win, at least. I underestimated Madeleine’s horse,” she sighed.

“Well, third place is still good, isn’t it?”

“You’re not used to winning are you?” Olivia sounded snarky again.

“Well, no. I’m not usually a winner.”

“Well, it’s hard for me, okay? I always strive to be the best,” her voice softened.

“That’s not a bad quality to have,” I smiled and it felt like she was also smiling but I couldn’t tell for sure.

When we finally passed the finish line, we were greeted by Liam, Hana and Madeleine.

“Honestly, it’s so invigorating that someone else has finally won the competition,” Madeleine smiled and pointed at Hana. It was a cold smile, that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“I’m just glad you didn’t win, Madeleine,” Olivia smirked and helped me get off the horse.

“Liam, tell me the story of how you and Drake were playing in the gardens when you were kids again. I just loooove those childhood stories of yours,” Madeleine purred and put her arm on him. I knew she was doing it to annoy us but it still hurt me. I was trying hard not to show it but it wasn’t easy. Especially since I thought I was the only one he was telling his stories to. Obviously, it wasn’t true, but it was a pleasant fantasy, wasn’t it?

Liam winked at me and it felt like he sent me a secret message that no one else could see. I winked back and searched for Hana to talk to. She was standing apart from us, so I walked up to her and waved.

“Hey!” I smiled.

“Hey yourself,” she smiled but the smile was fake. I could tell, especially since Hana’s face was easily readable.

“I’m sorry that I didn’t ride with you,” I looked into her eyes.

“It’s okay. It’s just… It bugs me that it was her. It felt like you chose her over me, ridiculous, I know, but I’ve never really had a best friend and now when I actually have one, it feels like she’s being stolen. And by the person that hasn’t been the nicest to me,” she sighed and I leaped into a hug. I was her best friend? I never had best friends that were girls growing up, except for my sister. It was hard so it was exhilarating to hear that I was someone’s best friend.

“Hana, you don’t ever have to worry. Olivia will never steal me away from you! You are my best friend, too,” I smiled and she hugged back.

“Oh gosh! Really?”

“I promise!” we walked a bit further so that the others couldn’t hear us.

“She promised Liam that she wouldn’t stand in his way anymore and so she offered to help. And we wanted to give other ladies a chance to win a competition, since I couldn’t do this one on my own and Olivia isn’t really competing for Liam anymore. But she did apologize to me,” I whispered.

“Whaaaat? Olivia? Well, at least it’s something,” Hana whispered back and looked down.

“I’m sure she will apologize to you, too. It’s probably harder for her to apologize to you because she’s been much worse to you. You know how it is – it’s harder to apologize to the people you’ve hurt most,” I gave her an encouraging smile.

“I hope so… But I’m still in shock – Drake and Olivia? I can’t see it,” Hana shook her head.

“I actually think they’re perfect for each other.. Speaking of which, how are you and Maxwell doing?” I smiled and Hana blushed.

“We shared a kiss!”

“NO WAY!” I screamed excitedly and got the unwanted attention of Liam, Madeleine and Olivia.

“What are you two conspiring about?” Olivia eyed us carefully.

“Nothing! We’re just placing bets on who will be the fourth one in this race, I couldn’t believe that Hana said Penelope’s going to be next!” I shouted back.

“Penelope’s definitely going to be last,” Madeleine said and Olivia shook her head.

“Kiara’s too overconfident, did you see how she was riding that horse?” Olivia answered and we left them to their devices while Hana whispered everything that happened.

Hana shared that the kiss happened two days after the beach party, when he was walking her back to her room after a day of lurking around at the palace. He held her hand a bit too long and she realized that Maxwell very nervous and he took a step forward and just kissed her. Then she invited him into her room and they had a makeout session until Bertrand called and he had to go.

“So you didn’t do anything else?” I raised my eyebrows.

“Oh no no, I don’t think we’re quite there yet,” she smiled.

“That’s good, you don’t need to rush anything. But it’d be quite the scandal if you did,” I teased her.

“We probably won’t, since we only had one makeout session,” she chuckled.

“Another makeout session is all that it takes, really,” I said and both of us giggled. I spotted Penelope’s horse and Penelope riding confidently on it.

“Olivia was right, Kiara’s riding was sloppy, ” Hana nodded. Just as Penelope arrived, Kiara showed up at the horizon. She looked exhausted and like she had fell a few times – her riding gear was muddy and dusty.

“What happened?” Olivia and Madeleine both looked at the new arrivals with widened eyes.

“Kiara had a scuffle with her horse,” Penelope giggled.

“Scuffle?” Madeleine was waiting for an answer.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” she sighed and walked over. Since all of us were here, Liam told us that it was time to go enjoy the feast, at last. We walked slowly with the horses and I could feel the muscles of my tighs burning. Was it really because of the horse riding? Ouch, to say the least. At least now I knew – riding a horse? Definitely not for me.

When we walked back, the others were just arriving.

“Mommy! Who won?” I heard Sarah’s voice and I ran to her.

“Hana did, sweetie,” I smiled.

“Yay! She’s the one I like most..” she smiled at me.

“Hey, what about me?” Maxwell acted offended.

“You don’t count, you’re my best friend, of course I like you!” she said excitedly.

I waved at Rachel who was just walking around aimlessly.

“Save me,” she muttered.

“What happened?”

“Bertrand is sooooo boring. He knows everything and expects everyone to know the same things. Ugh, he lectured me on spoons. SPOONS, ASHLEY!” Rachel sounded desperate, so I giggled and gave her a hug.

“You’re brave,” I told her.

“Not by choice,” she answered sarcastically.

We walked to the tables where everyone else was sitting, Hana was told to sit next to Liam. Both of them looked very uncomfortable next to each other. Liam winked at me again and I winked back. The King seemed to notice and he stared right at me. I smiled at him politely but it felt awkward since he didn’t stop staring. Were Cordonians usually like this? Or was it just a noble thing?

Me and the girls, of course, were seated next to Bertrand and Maxwell. The King announced that it was time to feast and so we did. There were a lot of meat dishes – barbecue ribs, chicken wings and such, but it was understandable, since it was “The Royal Hunt”, kind of. They were trying to uphold the traditions as much as they could, given the circumstances. Everyone was chatting away but I wasn’t really in the mood, so I just ate in silence while listening to the girls talking about what happened during the day. Sarah was happy with her day, Rachel, of course, was upset. They agreed that they would switch brothers on the way back. Sarah spending the evening in Bertrand’s care? Ha! Now that’s something I’d personally love to see.

After the feast, everyone mingled. It was getting dark and everyone was thinking of the shortest way home – since we all were very tired. I was on my way to greet Liam but I felt someone grab my shoulders and turn me around.

“Hello beautiful,” I heard Tariq’s voice and rolled my eyes.

“Did you want something?” I asked, obiously annoyed at his presence.

“Just… you,” he whispered. I chuckled right in his face and he looked very offended. Good, I thought.

“Listen, I don’t think you understand what’s happening here,” I spoke up and he just touched my hand. I swatted it away. Was I being unclear or what was happening?

“Why do you resist me?” he asked and I sighed loudly.

“You really don’t get it, do you? I’m not interested or into you, I’m only here for Liam,” as I said the words, I glanced at Liam who was talking to Hana and Madeleine.

“Oh, so you’re one of those crown chasers then? Figures,” Tariq answered. He was getting more annoying by the minute. I didn’t even bother answering him because I never wanted to talk to him again. The way he talked and acted just put me off so much. I just walked away from him. He was not worth the time or the efforts.

I felt a tap on my shoulder.

“Hi,” Liam asked. I smiled. Finally!

“Hey stranger. Long time no see,” I smiled at him.

“This is the first challenge you lost, I’m surprised,” he chuckled.

“I know, I kind of thought that with Olivia by my side, I’d have a better shot at winning,” I sighed.

“Well, you’re still a winner in my eyes. Maxwell told me that you are terrified of horses and you actually rode one today, it’s a win in my book. None of the other suitors faced their fears tonight,” he reached for my hand and I smiled. Was he really calling me brave for riding a horse today? That was SO cheesy but I liked it.

“And you faced your fear when you were what, Sarah’s age?” I laughed and he laughed with me.

“I missed you today.”

“I missed you too, Prince Liam.”

The King announced that it was time to go home, both of us sighed.

“I should join my Father. But, I got a new phone, so let’s keep in touch and text each other?” he asked and I nodded. That also was totally cheesy but cute. He passed me his phone and I put my number in it. I felt nostalgic – it reminded me of the times I had to text my crushes in middle school and highschool because we couldn’t meet face to face.

Liam took my hand and brushed his lips on my knuckles.

“I promise that we’ll see each other a lot more when this is over,” he smiled mischievously and I really wanted to believe him, I did.

We were already halfway back to the palace when Olivia finally spoke to me.

“If I was you, I’d be careful around Tariq. I saw him bugging you today,” she whispered.

“Why? I think I managed him pretty well today.”

“When he wants someone, he can get pretty relentless… And he has gotten a few rape allegations thrown his way,” she sighed. WHAT?

“Rape allegations?”

“There are quite a few. All of them have been either paid off or silenced. Either way, steer clear of him,” Olivia warned.

“Gladly… But tell me why is he still here, then? Why are his parents bailing him out, if it’s true? How could the King sell Applewood Manor to Tariq?”

“Because everything is not the way it seems,” she said quietly. It sounded ominous. The ride back to the palace was very quiet again. I tried to ask Olivia more questions but she just shut me off. What was happening?

We were first to arrive, so I waited until Sarah and Rachel came back. Olivia was staying close to me. Tariq was the second to arrive, he just nodded at us and left for the stables.

“Something’s really messed up with him, I can feel it,” she said and I nodded. Everytime he was near, it felt unsettling. I couldn’t describe it in any other way. Would he really do something terrifying to other human beings? My head said no, that no rational human being would,but my gut… Well, that was an entirely different story.

When Sarah and Rachel finally arrived, Sarah was gleeful but Rachel looked more tired than ever.

“Maxwell has TOO much energy,” Rachel groaned.

“Really? Bertrand told me things he did when he was my age, it sounds fun!” Sarah excitedly said. I laughed. Poor Rachel, this just wasn’t her day, so I hugged her and we walked back to our room, with Olivia closely guarding us.

“Thanks, but we’re okay, really,” I assured her but she just shook her head and mouthed: “Not with Tariq after you, you aren’t” so that the girls wouldn’t hear. Tariq was scrawny and I was sure that I was going to be able to handle him but if Olivia thought he was dangerous, something told me to go along with her.

“Luckily, after tomorrow, we won’t have to stay here much longer,” Olivia said.

“What’s tomorrow?” Sarah asked. She didn’t even look tired. I had a feeling that Rachel will fall asleep much faster than she does.

“The country jamboree, the last party in the manor, finally,” Olivia sighed and shot Sarah a friendly look.

I sent both of the girls inside the room and thanked Olivia.

“It’s nothing,” she said.

“Have you talked to Hana?”

“Do I have to?” she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, you do. You really do,” I was stern.

“I know, I know! I’ll talk to her. Someday,” she smirked and off she was. I smiled. She was a real piece of work. But I felt that we were destined to meet, that I needed her in my life. I had a feeling that she could feel it, too.


	15. Fair Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains unwanted sexual advances and violence, reader discretion is advised.

The next morning we were allowed to finally sleep in. Maxwell texted me that Bertrand’s muscles ached from all the horse riding. Worked for me – I went to bed very late because me and Liam kept texting each other. It really felt like we were teenagers. He wanted to meet me downstairs and to go for a nighttime stroll but I was too tired to move my body so I convinced him that I would spend some time with him at the country jamboree and he gladly accepted.

When Bertrand came to see us with outfits that Anita’s wife had made for us, we were already in full makeup and waiting for them.

“What took you so long?” Rachel asked and Bertrand was taken aback.

“Honestly, I thought you’d still be in your beds by now,” he replied.

“No, we’re proper ladies and proper ladies get ready in time!” Sarah said and Bertrand looked pleased. Was that what he was teaching her on the way home last night? I raised an eyebrow at them.

“What’s going on between you two?”

“Nothing! Bertrand just told me that there’s a real chance you get to be the Queen, so he was preparing me on the royal edi.. eti-quette!” Sarah corrected herself and smiled at me.

“That’s creepy,” Rachel chuckled.

“There’s nothing creepy about knowing your manners,” Bertrand defended himself and laid down the dresses on the beds.

“WOW, they’re so beautiful! And the flowers, look mommy!” Sarah pointed and I nodded. The dresses were short, with spaghetti straps and floral – they looked very appropriate for a jamboree. And looked like something I would actually wear every day back in New York.

“Don’t forget your belts,” he handed us three brown belts to put around the dresses.

“And last but not LEAST – the shoes!” Maxwell exclaimed and brought out three pairs of brown boots. Two of them were thigh-high but the smaller ones, obviously meant for Sarah, were knee-high. They looked so adorable!

“I finally get to fulfill my dreams of dressing like you,” Rachel laughed. I rolled my eyes. Ever since I started to dress myself, Rachel wanted to do that, too. She always tried to copy my style or steal my clothes so that she could wear them. I didn’t mind it that much at first – I loved that I have a mini-fan but it did get annoying pretty fast, especially when I had a skirt picked out to wear to school and then couldn’t find it anywhere.

After we got dressed, the Beaumonts nodded at us as we modelled the outfits for them.

“Very nice, very nice,” Bertrand murmured.

“You girls look fantastic!”

“Didn’t you mean, darn tootin’ fantastic?” Rachel smirked and we all laughed.

We heard lots of voices and music coming from downstairs when we exited the room.

“Has the jamboree started already?”

“Tariq decided to start early, yes,” Bertrand nodded. _Ugh, Tariq._

When we walked downstairs, he was showing Penelope and Kiara some of his paintings, not paying any attention to us, which I, of course, liked a lot.

“Where’s Hana?” I asked Maxwell.

“How… how should I know? I have no clue where Lady Hana might be, nope, not at all,” Maxwell said awkwardly and I smiled.

“Is it okay if I go and find her?” I asked Bertrand and, surprisingly, he nodded.

“I was about to go and mingle myself.”

“Mommy, can I come with you?” Sarah pleaded and I nodded. I haven’t been spending as much time with her lately and I felt guilty about that, so I took her hand. Rachel waved us away, saying that she’d gladly mingle with Maxwell.

“If you’re sure,” I said.

“Of course, he was about to teach me his iconic moves,” Rachel smiled at us. Since when was Rachel interested in dancing? I shook my head but left it alone, maybe she really did enjoy dancing but I just didn’t notice?

Me and Sarah walked to Hana’s wing and there she was – leaning against a window, talking on the phone with someone. When she saw us, she smiled at mouthed: “It’s my mom!”

“Yes. Yes, yes. I guess, mother. Yes, I think so. Yes, thank you, I did win the competition all by myself. Yes, the pie baking competiton can also be counted as my win, finally,” she sighed. Hana looked tired, she had bags under her eyes and it felt like today was a bit too much for her.

“Am I going to talk with you like that when I grow up?” Sarah whispered. She actually looked worried.

“I sure hope not, I want to be friends with you, when you grow up,” I smiled at her and she smiled back. We waited for Hana to end the conversation but it seemed neverending.

“Hana, tell her you have stuff to do, we have an event to attend to,” I whispered.

“Ookay, wait. No mother, I wasn’t talking to you. Lady Ashley just came by and told me that I had to get ready. Yes, for the jamboree today, I already told you all about it, didn’t I? Yes, she’s with her daughter. Yes, she is cute,” Hana kept going.

“Hana, we _really_ have to go,” I whispered.

“Okay, you know what, mother? I have to go, I don’t want you berating me, before I have to go to an event, you know that you get into my head and then I can’t do anything. Thank you, goodbye!” Hana finally hung up. She looked angry.

“Woah, so that was your mom?” I widened my eyes. She frowned.

“Sadly, yes. She’s not a bad person, I promise, but she can be just a bit…”

“Overbearing?” I finished her sentence and Hana nodded.

“She thinks she knows what’s best for me,” Hana sighed. She looked really sad and it kind of made my heart sink a little bit. I was a mother myself but I would never make Sarah do all of the things Hana has told me she had to do and learn to impress a bunch of people she didn’t even know.

“Is it what’s actually best for you?” I encouraged her. She looked at me and Sarah.

“I’m not sure anymore… Looking at the bond the two of you share, I’m actually very jealous. And kind of angry that my mom didn’t want this type of relationship with me,” she sighed loudly. We both hugged her.

“Maybe your parents were raised that way themselves? That’s probably all they knew,” I tried to calm her down.

“I’m sure your mommy loves you soooooo much!” Sarah said as she hugged her. Hana smiled weakly at us.

“You’re both the best,” she said. We helped pick her outfit for the jamboree – a pink ruffly dress and she decided to wear some cowboy boots. Then I helped her hide the bags under her eyes. When we were done, Hana modelled her outfit to us.

“You’ll fit in nicely!” Sarah was excited. She loved parties because they were usually attended by other children that she could run around and play with – and there were plenty of children outside today. It was a bit strange to me since I never saw them before in any events.

“I’ve never seen so many children in an event before,” I said, in amazement, when we finally stepped outside.

“Me neither. I didn’t expect this, these events are usually reserved for the suitors and the court,” Hana said, surprised, when a bunch of children ran past us.

“Not in the mood for playing?” I asked Sarah when she looked at all the fun the other children were having.

“They look like big kids, I don’t want to,” she said sadly and I nodded. I put my hands protectively over her.

“That’s understandable, they’re very big kids. Beside, I’m way more fun than them,” I smirked and she laughed. Her laughter was contagious and soon all three of us were laughing. She hugged me. When we finally saw Maxwell, he was showing off his moves to some of the ladies. They were admiring him but I don’t think Maxwell even noticed them, when he looked up and saw Hana, that was it. He was mesmerised by her. He immediately stopped and walked over to where we were standing. The three ladies looked offended, scoffed and walked away, giving us death stares. I politely smiled back at them. _Drama queens._

“Hey! Enjoying yourselves?” Maxwell asked awkwardly. I shared a look with Hana and we nodded.

“I’ve never seen so many people in these events, Maxwell. Who are they?”

“I do recognise most of them – they are dukes and duchesses from all over the country. I guess Tariq invited them,” he shrugged.

“I thought these events were reserved for the royal court and the suitors,” Hana said.

“It was supposed to be that way. Oh well, the more the merrier? Sarah can make some royal connections her own age now,” Maxwell smiled at her while she shyly held onto my arm as if it was a lifeguard.

“I’m not sure that’s the best idea,” I protested.

“Why?”

“She’s feeling shy. When she’s ready, she’ll introduce herself,” I looked at him and he nodded, as if understanding. He probably didn’t and just did that to avoid conflict but I was happy enough.

We tried to mingle with the nobles but most of them were too stuck up or pretended that they didn’t notice us.

“Wow, Drake was right,” I chuckled.

“About what?”

“These nobles are so full of themselves. But we don’t really need them to have fun, don’t we?” I looked at everyone and they nodded. We grabbed some tiny appetizers, ate for a while and then danced as much as we could bear, checking out the activities for the day.

“These events actually make me miss Drake,” Maxwell sighed.

“I know, he actually knew how to have fun despite most of the nobles not liking him, ” I nodded.

“He would have hated this,” Hana smiled.

“How could he hate this? We have archery, we have basketball courts, we have apple bobbing contests and most important of all – we have whiskey. He would love this,” Maxwell tried to convince us.

The press were walking around and asked every noble they could spot a lot of questions. Most of them didn’t even look our way. It looked like they weren’t even considering us for an interview. It was probably because all of us were in the news constantly and they wanted some faces that the public hasn’t seen in a while. _To stir up more drama_.

We decided to shoot some arrows, so we all went to archery stand. Hana pretended to not know archery so that Maxwell could teach her. He stood behind her and told her exactly what to do. She aimed the perfect shot and hugged Maxwell.

“Thank you for helping me!” she smiled and he blushed.

“Wow, you pick up everything fast! I’m really impressed!” he gasped. He wouldn’t be, if he knew as much as I did. That Hana was actually a brilliant archer since her parents made her learn it, too. She was one of the best archers back in China, where she grew up, and had competed in a lot of international competitions. But Maxwell didn’t need to know that, so I just smiled and pretended to be surprised, too.

“It’s just because you’re such a great teacher,” she praised him and he looked very pleased with himself. Me and Hana shared a look and I couldn’t help but giggle.

I looked around to see if I could spot Rachel but she was nowhere in sight. I asked Maxwell when was the last time he saw her and he told me she just ran off with some boy just before he saw me and Hana approaching this morning.

“Oh, that doesn’t sound like Rachel,” I chuckled. _Off with a boy? She wouldn’t. Or?_

“Well, that’s what I saw, believe it or not,” he shrugged. I furrowed my brow. Would she really do that? I knew that she wasn’t having the most fun time here but would she really just leave with some guy? I sighed when I realized that if she was anything like me at all, she totally would. _Oh, Rachel. Just be careful._

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Me and Sarah decided to leave the lovebirds alone so we walked up to the playground that Tariq set out for the children. There were a lot of young women here and at first, I thought, that it was impressive that these young duchesses could have it all – children AND taking care of the people in their duchy. But then I realized that these were just the nannies they hired. Didn’t they have family members who could help?

Sarah was still shy and wouldn’t go on anything, not even her favorite thing – the swings. So we just sat on the bench, the two of us, enjoying the sun and looking at the other kids having fun. Most of them were having a blast and I was so glad that almost all of them were also friendly, not spoiled, as I suspected. _I should lay off the judgement_ , I thought to myself because I realized I knew a lot of nobles who weren’t spoiled like Hana, Liam and Olivia.

“Hey Sarah, are you having a lot of fun?” I heard Liam’s voice behind us and looked up to smile at him.

“No, I’m not feeling very well,” she replied sadly and frowned.

“Why?” Liam sat down next to her and she looked him up and down.

“I’m scared. What if they make fun of me because I’m not royal?” she asked and sighed loudly. Oh, that’s what it was! My heart broke just a little bit. Why was she worried about that?

“Who gave you that idea?” Liam asked softly.

“Rachel was talking on her phone yesterday, saying to her friend that the others look at us differently because we’re not royal,” she finally answered after a long pause. It made my heart ache even more. Both of them felt that way? I knew I did, but I had no idea that my fears would transfer to theirs. I never noticed anyone looking differently at them, if I did, I would’ve said something. I knew I had to have a talk with Rachel.

“Listen to me, Sarah. You’re a great girl and these little kids would be lucky to have you as their friend. I was born royal but my best friend Drake was a commoner, that never stopped us from having fun and I never looked at him differently. He’s still my best friend,” he patted her tiny little head. She leaned into him and gave him a big hug.

“Will you come with me?” Sarah took his hand. His hands looked so big in comparison to hers. Liam smiled at her and turned to me.

“Go, go!” I smiled at them and Sarah took Liam to the swingset and waited for her turn while I sat on the bench looking at the two of them. If I didn’t know any better, I’d assume they are father and daughter. She was as blonde as him and had the same intense look in her eyes as he did. Sarah looked nothing like her father and for that I was grateful. I still had no clue where her blonde hair came from since both me and Paul had dark hair but right now, I was very thankful for every little blond hair follicle on her little head.

When a girl finally let Sarah get on the swings, he pushed her so gently that she had to shout for him to go faster. All the nannies, of course, smiled at him. Some were flirty smiles, some were adoring. I was usually very insecure in my own relationships that I’d see the flirty smiles and start doubting myself but not this time. He made me feel like he really cherished his time with me, so I didn’t even have time to think about my own insecurities and feelings of jealousy. I still couldn’t believe it, the next king of Cordonia was pushing MY daughter on the swings and making time to get to know her. Was it the best feeling in the world? Yes.

We spent the whole day together at the playground, playing with Sarah in the playhouse and she even made a friend and ran off with her. Of course, she ran back to us and we got some ice-cream and took a stroll around, so that we could talk to everyone but everyone was too busy. It felt like we were this little tiny family. Liam treated Sarah like she was his and it was heartwarming for me. Sarah also opened up to him a lot more. I felt like this was meant to be. This was the beginning of something beautiful.

Maxwell came running to us with a shocked Rachel behind him.

“We were just kissing!” she said and Maxwell shook his head.

“She was kissing the next duke of Carlsford!” Maxwell said strictly and looked at me. I giggled.

“So?”

“So? If Bertrand found out, he’d be furious! Carlsford is right next to Ramsford and the Duke of Carlsford is an angry, angry man, Ashley. He doesn’t like our duchy and we don’t like theirs!” Maxwell gasped. I sighed and took Maxwell aside a little bit to calm him down and tell him that it’s not his business who Rachel does or doesn’t kiss. And Bertrand would have to deal with that, too. Maxwell gasped. I tried to calm him down and then told him that if Bertrand has problems with it, he should take it up with me. Maxwell seemed pleased enough.

“You don’t have to do everything the way your brother does. You can pave your own way,” I encouraged him and he nodded. Then turned to Rachel who had an embarrassed look on his face.

“I’m sorry, I just saw you two and felt like.. I should intervene,” he looked at the ground.

“Just don’t.. do that again! And Ash, I promise, we were just kissing, nothing more!” Rachel pleaded with me and I couldn’t stop giggling. At her age I was a lot more rebellious and did things differently. I trusted her and knew that she was a good girl, so I had nothing to worry about.

“It’s okay, go find your duke. But find me before dark, okay? I want to enjoy the fireworks with you,” I smiled and she nodded. She didn’t even say goodbye, she just ran off. _Ah, young love._

“So how many duchies are there in Cordonia?” I turned to Liam and he smiled at me. Probably pleased to tell me everything he knew about his favorite country.

“The last time I counted there were 18 duchies all together.”

“18? So why weren’t there 18 ladies vying for you but only 6?” I raised my eyebrow.

“Because only the Houses are eligable, not every duchy belongs to a house. There are a few unclaimed duchies that have palaces but the last ancestor didn’t have a heir so those belong to the King right now and as King, I will have to make sure that all of the nobles have duchies to rule over,” he smiled.

“So if we get married…”

“You get your own duchy!” he smiled proudly and I gasped. Wow. I’d have to be a queen AND own and look after a duchy? That was a lot.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, just a lot to process. Why didn’t Bertrand mention any of this to me when we were studying?”

“He was probably busy teaching you etiquette, he enjoys those lessons the most. My father even made me attend Bertrand’s seminars,” Liam laughed.

“Seminars?”

“Yes, Bertrand hosts annual seminars for the youngest royals to attend, most of them are about etiquette and he actually teaches the young nobles a lot before the start of the social season.”

“That’s why he reminds me of a teacher. He actually is one!” I laughed and Liam laughed with me, so did Sarah. She wasn’t even tired out yet, so we walked around for a bit and talked some more about the duchies of Cordonia. Then, the sun was starting to set.

“Well, that’s me. Have to go and prepare for my speech in a few minutes. I’ve enjoyed my time with you, Lady Ashley,” he brushed my knuckles with his lips and winked at me. He said goodbye to Sarah with a hug.

“You should come and enjoy the fireworks with us,” Sarah smiled at him and he promised he’ll do everything in his power to ensure that it would happen. When he walked away, all I could think about was that he had a nice ass and that he really was the best. He was charming, loving, sweet, a children lover and, of course, sensitive. Could it get any perfect than this?

We all gathered around the big podium in the center to hear Liam’s big speech. I was holding Sarah’s hand with my right hand and felt someone take the other one. I was surprised at first but then I realised it was Rachel.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she smiled and kissed my cheek.

“For what?”

“For letting me have the best time!” she squealed and made me laugh.

“I’m glad,” I smiled at her. I really was glad. She was the best kid – she was smart, got all A’s, was a nice human being overall, why shouldn’t she have a little fun? Our parents weren’t the strictest but when it came to fun, they kind of were, especially since my experience scared them a lot. They didn’t let Rachel have as much freedom as I and our older brother had at her age. It wasn’t fair but I understood why they were stricter on her.

Hana and Maxwell came behind us.

“After Liam’s speech, we finally get to eat a proper meal and see the fireworks, we have a table reserved,” he said.

“Is Hana coming with us?”

“Of course!” he and Hana smiled at each other.

“If I may get your attention please. I’d like to say a few words before we eat and dance the night away. First, I’d like to thank our gracious host Tariq and his parents for hosting today’s social event,” Liam gestured towards Tariq and his parents who were standing next to the King and Queen. They all nodded politely.

“Second of all, I’d like to thank all of the nobility that has chosen to grace us with their presence this evening, it was one of the best jamboree’s I’ve attended,” he smiled and winked at me. My heart fluttered.

“When I step into my father’s shoes in a few days, I can only hope that I am half the man he’s been for Cordonia,” he paused dramatically.

“Long live Prince Liam!” Maxwell shouted and other people joined in.

“Thank you all, the next time we will meet like this, it will be the last event of the social season. As always, we will be hosted by House Beaumont in their magnificent estate. The Beaumonts will definitely deliver another legendary ball we’ll all remember. Thank you again and I hope you enjoy your night,” he smiled politely and stepped off the podium.

I turned to Maxwell.

“Will we finally host a Beaumont Bash? I’ve heard so much about them,” I was excited. I was finally going to see the estate of the House I was in.

“Beaumont Bash for the win!” Maxwell thumped his fist into the air and Hana giggled at the gesture.

“Another party?” Sarah gasped.

“Another party,” Rachel said and patted Sarah’s head.

We were slowly walking with Maxwell to the reserved table when a servant approached me.

“A note from Prince Liam,” she said coldly. I nodded and took the note in my hands. I looked at Liam who was still at the podium, talking with the people who were approaching him and shaking their hands. I read the note slowly.

“ _My dearest Ashley, meet me in the east wing in about 20 minutes, I really want to share something with you._

_Yours truly_ **,**

_Prince Liam_.”

The note made me giggle, was he really this formal while writing notes? Why didn’t he text me instead? I looked up at him and at this moment, he was actually looking at me and winked. Now I was intrigued. Did he think it was more romantic this way?

As I was leaving, Olivia approached. I quickly pulled her aside.

“Hey, I have to meet Liam in the Manor, do you mind checking in on the girls?” I asked and Olivia nodded.

“Why would Liam want to meet you in the Manor?” she looked confused. I shrugged my shoulders.

“I have no clue, he left me a note,” I gave the note to Olivia and walked quickly on so no one noticed my absence.

When I walked up the stairs to the Manor, the unsettling feeling came back. Was someone watching me? I turned around, like a maniac and, of course, no one was there, so I ran up the stairs as quickly as I could.

 _I’m imagining things. No one’s watching me_ , but as I told this to myself in my own head, I knew something was off. When I finally reached the east wing, there was a huge tall man in a black suit and black glasses looking at me.

“Are you Ashley?” he asked, his voice low and husky. I nodded, terrified of the man and he took me by my hands and dragged me into a room and I stood there for a few seconds. It was pitch black and I couldn’t see anything but I realized it was the room that Tariq arranged for me. And then it hit me. Liam didn’t write the note. _Tariq_. When I turned around to open the door, I heard a _click!_ and realized that the tall man locked it. When I turned around, to look for a way out, I realized that I wasn’t the only one here. I heard breathing. And I knew it was him. That disgusting man.

“You can show yourself, you freak,” I said angrily and switched on the lights. There he was, looking outside the window, just standing there. He turned around and his smile was creepy as hell. It terrified me but I wasn’t going to show my weakness, not to this despicable man. I had enough of this spoiled man-child.

He took a few steps forward, his hands behind his back and smiling.

“I’m not scared,” I replied. I was lying.

“But you will be. Did you really think your Prince would want to meet you here? You silly, foolish little girl. He will never choose you,” he said slowly. I was prepared to kick him when I saw something in his eyes. I realized that he probably has a weapon behind his arms and that’s why he was so cocky.

“I’m so sick of people telling me that. What do you want from me?”

“To have you, of course. No one says no to Tariq. No one,” he looked into my eyes as he pulled out a knife and looked at me. I knew he was looking for a reaction and he definitely got one. I gasped and he chuckled in response. The fireworks started outside and it got very loud. I realized that no one would hear me scream, even if I attempted to. He chose the perfect time to lure me away.

“If you ever want to leave this room alive, you should undress for me. If you didn’t want to seduce a man, you shouldn’t have worn the thigh-high boots, they turn me on,” he licked his lips. _Fuck, fuck, fuck, this isn’t happening._ I couldn’t believe it. There was no way out, except for the window but if I’d jump from there, there’d be a high chance of me not making it. I wasn’t prepared to die just yet. I gulped and did as he asked. I slowly took off my clothes and he shook his head.

“Oh no no no, seductively. Like you want me, like you can’t stand the thought of not being with me,” as he said the words, I felt disgusted. He was gross and the thought of him even touching me, made me sick to my stomach. I wanted to cry but I didn’t want to show him that he had me cornered.

I tried to look more seductive but I couldn’t. He just made it difficult, especially since he was holding a knife before me and looking at me with those lifeless eyes. I tried to take off my boots seductively but it didn’t impress him at all.

“How does a hot girl not know how to be seductive? Maybe this will make you more compliant,” after he said that I felt a stinging pain in my arm.

“OUCH,” I cried out in pain. I looked at my right arm, where the blood was already slowly trickling down and I widened my eyes. This guy was truly crazy. _He just slashed my arm with his knife!_

“Seeing you in pain turns me on more, ” he walked up to me and pulled the florarl dress off of me. He did the same with my bra and put the knife right next to my neck. I was half naked and scared. Humiliated. Shocked.

“Would you like to bleed from your neck, too? Kiss me like you mean it, ” I smelled alcohol on Tariq’s breath and I shuddered. I swallowed hard and pressed my lips lightly on his and he shook his head. I was trying to imagine him as Liam but it wasn’t working and he wasn’t happy about it at all.

“Oh no, babygirl, like this,” Tariq pressed his face into mine in a passionate kiss. I didn’t answer and I still felt sharp pains from my arm. He looked at it and laughed.

“Oh, it’s nothing. You should’ve seen the other girls I’ve had sex with,” he smiled at me.

“You mean raped?” as I said the words, I instantly regretted them. Tariq’s eyes went crazy and his knife slashed my collarbone. I cried out in pain and instantly was on my knees. He slashed it again and again, and I cried out everytime. When I looked down at my chest area, it was bloodied, with several slash marks. He slashed me about twenty times while still smirking. Then the pain of it all hit me at once.

_FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK._

“Now then, will you finally listen to me so we can fuck?” he asked and with tears in my eyes I shook my head. He lowered himself so he could look into my eyes.

“Never,” I said the words through the pain. He truly was a psycho.

“It’s your funeral,” he smiled and grabbed me by neck. He was strangling me with one of his hands but with the other he was grabbing my breasts and groping them. All I wanted was more breathing space so I could kick him in the groin but, unfortunately, he wasn’t letting me go. He was too strong for me physically and I felt helpless. Helpless and afraid, was this really how I was supposed to meet my end – by a sick fuck who loved to hurt women? I tried to wiggle and scream but nothing seemed to help me. I promised myself that today wasn’t the last day I would see my daughter and that thought kept me strong through the pain.

“STEP AWAY FROM THE GIRL, TARIQ,” I heard Olivia’s voice and thought I was dreaming. When Tariq finally stopped strangling me and I looked up, there she was. My savior. Furious. Very furious. The red hair really suited her, especially right now. I took a big gulp of air, my neck hurt and I just knew that there was going to be heavy brusing. I tried to take a look at what was happening, so I slowly pulled myself up. Everything hurt and I flinched a couple of times but, at least, I was able to stand.

I looked at Tariq and Olivia, Tariq was pointing a knife at her, visibly afraid of this woman and she scoffed.

“Is that all you can do?” she pulled out three blades from the tiny pocket in her dress. He looked terrified and threw his sharp knife away. Olivia kicked him in the groin and all I could think about was how grateful I was that she was here. He tried to run away but she didn’t let him. I heard a groan coming from Tariq. _Go Olivia!_

“Are you okay?” I heard Liam’s voice behind me. _Liam! He was here!_ I felt like an excited puppy who finally got to see her owner. He pulled me close to his chest. I flinched in pain and stepped away. I bloodied his jacket with my wounds and looked at him, feeling guilty, as if this mattered right now.

Liam took a look at my bruised and bloodies body and gasped.

“Did Tariq do this?” he asked in a low voice. I had never seen him like this and I nodded. He turned around, slowly walked up to Tariq, who was trying to get away from Olivia, and Liam punched him. Again. And again. And again. AND AGAIN. He didn’t stop, he just kept doing it, like it was on instinct.

“Olivia, stop him, he’s going to kill him!” I said when I saw how quick Tariq’s face was getting purple. I didn’t want Liam to be imprisoned or for him to feel guilty over this despicable human.

“Tariq totally deserves it,” Olivia chuckled and I looked pleadingly at her. She rolled her eyes at me.

“Yeah yeah, but Liam does not deserve all the shit he’s going to get after this,” she said and tried to pull Liam away from Tariq. She wasn’t able to at first because Liam didn’t want to let go but when she finally did, he looked lost. He looked at me and his hands were balled into fists again.

“DON’T!” I screamed and I walked up to him, weak in the knees but I wanted to stop the craziness.

“What did that monster do to you?” he gasped as he was looking at my body and my neck. I felt very self – conscious, especially since I was only wearing panties and had nothing else covering me, my breasts were out and everything probably looked way worse than it actually was. Olivia dialed some numbers on her phone and walked outside, while Liam took off his suit jacket and gave it to me. I was shivering so I took it. And I told him everything, about the note, the man who locked me in, about Tariq who was threathening me with a knife and slashed me, and strangled me. Liam shook his head and held me in his arms.

“Security will not be leaving you ever,” he whispered into my ear.

“But I’m fine!” I tried saying it with a straight face but I winced in pain when he brushed against my shoulder where the arm was slashed.

Tariq was just lying on the floor until the police officers came. I had to recount what happened to the police and the emergency response unit who looked at my wounds and made sure I took some painkillers so that they could properly sanitize the wounds.

The police took away Tariq but not before Olivia told him what a piece of trash he was. He smiled in response.

“This isn’t my first or last time in a cop car,” he said and I shuddered. _Did he really think he could get away after this?_

The doctor who looked at my wounds told me that none of them are critical while some are deep and that I could just rest at home, they will heal in time. I told her that I still had events to go to and the doctor smiled at me.

“I understand. You can resume your life as normal if you’re feeling well enough. I’d suggest a lot of fresh air and rest the first two days, after that everything should be okay. I will also prescribe you some painkillers, but take them only when you need them. I know that the wounds look terrifying but I promise you, you will be okay, ” she said and I nodded. I was still in shock, even hen the doctors finally left. When we were left alone, Liam took me into his arms and started carrying me.

“I will keep you safe,” he said softly. I covered myself with his jacket on and snuggled onto his chest. His dress shirt was all bloody from hugging me but it didn’t look like he minded. He took me to his room and gently put me in the bed. He looked at me and my wounds and I saw tears forming into his eyes.

“Hey! Hey, it’s okay. I’m okay, I’m here,” I smiled as I looked at him.

“I almost lost you today, Ashley. I realized that I never ever want to lose you. I will protect you with everything I have,” he said quietly and kissed me softly. I wanted more but he pulled away.

“I love you, Lady Ashley Fabiano,” he whispered into my ear.

“I love you too, Prince Liam of Cordonia,” I answered him softly.

“Does it hurt?” he pointed at my chest which was wrapped up in gauze. I shook my head.

“Does Sarah know?” I asked, worriedly. He shook his head.

“Olivia’s probably talking to your sister right now, but don’t worry, they’re all safe. We made arrangements for them to go to Beaumont Estate tonight with all of the suitors and the court, and with the best security teams we have available,” Liam looked at me and took my hand in his. I smiled and we both talked until I fell asleep, holding his hand.


	16. A king isn't born, he is made

When I heard my alarm on my phone, I wanted to throw it away. It felt so good – being snuggled up and warm. But then my chest started hurting and I remembered everything. Every little single detail from the previous gruesome night. Especially Tariq’s face. That evil and creepy smirk he had. He was really messed up in the head. _Fuck, fuck, fuck._ I had to go to the police station today to give my statement again, so they could prosecute Tariq and then join everyone at the Beaumont Estate. I didn’t want to. I really didn’t. Especially since I didn’t want to see my girls. I didn’t want them to see me like this – bruised up and weak. I didn’t want to be weak. I knew that what happened wasn’t my fault but being percieved as weak was one of my worst fears and insecurities. After all, I had to be rescued, therefore, I _was_ weak.

I took a big breath and tensed up because I felt the pain in my chest. Liam was still sleeping and I didn’t want to wake him. He deserved a good night’s sleep. When I stood up, I realized I was naked. The only thing I had on were my panties. _Fuuuck_ , I cursed in my head. Then it hit me. I was almost raped. Almost. I ran to the bathroom that was next to the bedroom, so I didn’t wake Liam. It hit me so hard that I couldn’t stop bawling in the shower. Why was I so stupid to think that Liam sent me that note? _Really_? Olivia even had doubts but I didn’t. I didn’t even listen to my inner voice. It was perfect timing on Tariq’s part. I couldn’t be more foolish. And to think that the first time Liam saw me naked was when I was all bloody and hurt. I always imagined the first time he would see me naked would be more sensual and I’d have a little dance before revealing my naked skin but no. He saw me at my lowest. I was weak. _He probably will never see me as a strong woman after witnessing me like that_ , I thought. But the one thing I didn’t want to be is a damsel in distress. I hated that so much – I’ve always been self-sufficient and when girls did that, it annoyed me so much.

After I stepped out of the shower, I looked at my naked, bruised body. My makeup was all over my face so I washed it. The bruises on my chest were red and sore, even after the shower. I looked terrible, my eyes were bloodshot red because of the crying and I felt like shit. Utter complete shit. How could I let this happen?

After I was done wallowing in self-pity, I realised that I didn’t have anything to cover myself up with so I just took a black robe that was next to the towels. It was too big for me, but felt comfortable enough. When I stepped out of the bathroom, Liam had already lined up the disinfectants and gauze in his bed.

“Hey. Is everything okay?” he asked softly. I looked at him and couldn’t stop the tears. He was so sweet, how could you not fall for him?

“No,” I confessed and took quick steps towards him. He stood up and pulled me in for a hug. While I was bawling, he kept patting my head and kissing my forehead, whispering the sweetest things in my ear. He was by far the most comforting person I’ve ever met. I came into this competition wanting to comfort him and not make him feel the burden of the royal duties he had to bear but he turned out to be _my_ rock. After I was done crying, I looked up and he pointed with his head at the disinfectants he had laid down. He made me lay there and he did everything – disinfect and put a new batch of gauze on me but he did it so slowly and painlessly.

“Have you done this before?” I asked.

“Lots of times. For Drake and Olivia, they got into all sorts of trouble as kids and I had lots of practice,” he smiled at me. After he was done, he made me wear his robe again.

“I’ll call someone to get you something to wear, with a turtleneck,of course, and then I’ll hop into the shower, okay?” he said softly. I nodded. He quickly phoned someone and walked over to the bathroom while I sat in the bed with my phone out. I knew that the press was there and they would speculate what happened. No one had released an official statement about what happened yet so pretty much everyone except for the people in the mess knew what happened. Was I ready to read the speculations? I shook my head and decided to read my messages instead.

I was actually surprised to see an unanswered called from Tom.. My brother. Why was he calling? Could he be worried? Or maybe he was in trouble? I sighed and dialed his number.

“Ash! Are you okay?” I heard his concerned voice and sighed in relief. He wasn’t in danger.

“I am. Are you?” I asked and I could hear his smile through the phone.

“You’re the one whose event was raided by the cops and medics and you’re the one worrying about me? Never change, Ashley,” he laughed. His voice was soothing and at this moment, I realised that I really missed my big brother. We were so close after Sarah was born but then we lost touch and that always made me wonder – was it something I did or was it something I could’ve prevented? He moved out of mom’s house to move in with his new girlfriend. I had called and texted him so much but he rarely answered, if at all so I decided not to try. And he didn’t put much effort into our sibling bond either. He did call our parents regularly and came to birthday parties if he wasn’t working but it wasn’t enough for me. He was a great uncle to Sarah but a shitty brother.

“I’m surprised you called, to be honest,” and it was true. I was surprised. I didn’t think he would be the one following Cordonian news.

“I did call mom first. She told me that she didn’t hear from you yet,” he sighed. And there it was, he did call mom first before even deciding to pull up my number.

“Well, it’s nice that you care,” I answered slowly. And it was nice, even though it sounded very sarcastic. And it kind of was.

“Of course I care! You are my baby sister, I care so much,” he replied. He sounded a bit.. offended?

“Thanks,” I said and that made the conversation feel stiff. There was a knock at the door and a lady walked in holding a hanger with some clothes. I nodded at her so she’d put them on the bed and kept awkwardly conversing with my brother. We had a bunch of small talk and we both hated it. But it was _my brother…_ We didn’t have a proper conversation in years so I really didn’t want to hang up on him. I did tell him what rougly happened, leaving out the details, so at least he’d know. He was in shock and told me to come home, at first. Then, after a few minutes of calming him down and telling him about Liam, he agreed that once Tariq is in prison, it will all be okay.

“I’ll be rooting for you, little one. Listen, Shannon will be home any minute now, I should hang up before she comes or she’ll be pissed again. But know this, I will be watching and if anything, you can always contact me on FaceSpace or call me,” he said nervously. So he actually wanted contact? Was this his way of asking me to keep in touch?

“Thank you,” I said and we hung up. It felt so weird. So so so weird. He was still with Shannon? All of us have never actually seen her, except for pictures. Well, my mom did once but by accident – she saw them while she was shopping. It was so strange and the way he talked about her was also strange. Why should she be pissed if he talks to his sister to whom he hasn’t talked to in years? My brother and his girlfriend were a mystery to all of us. Especially me and Rachel. I suspected that my mom knew a lot more than she lead on but I didn’t want to pry – it was probably none of my business. It was his life, not mine.

I slowly started putting on the black jeans on when Liam walked in, wrapped his lower body in a towel. I smirked at him.

“Hi there!” I smiled at him and he smiled back. He kissed me slowly and I leaned into the kiss.

“We should stop,” he said slowly. I nodded. There wasn’t much time – we had to be at the police station any minute and we had a long drive to the Beaumont Estate. And since I knew he was naked under the towel, that made me want him even more. I sighed and Liam helped me put my pants on.

“You don’t need to help me,” I smiled at him but he shook his head as if I just talked straight nonsense, so I obliged. He even helped me put on my bra. It was kind of fun. I put on a silk top and he helped me put on the pink turtleneck and he was so careful. I didn’t want to show my wounds to everyone straight away so I decided to wear turtlenecks until I feel more comfortable with my body and the wounds that will eventually either fade or turn into scars.

“Do you want to grab something before we go?” Liam asked when we headed out to his private limo. There were two police cars, one in the front of the limo and the other in the back. Liam was being very cautious. I shook my head. My bags were already in the Estate, I had my wallet and phone on me and I didn’t want anything else. Not from this place. I looked at the creepy estate and shuddered. Was this why Tariq wanted to buy this place? So that he could get girls here and do whatever? It was pretty far away from every other royal mansion or manor.

“I just want to be on our merry way,” I replied and Liam nodded when he opened the door for me. _Such a gentleman._

When we got to the police station, a polite woman took my statement and put it in her thick folder. I glanced at it and it just said “Tariq” with big letters. The folder was so thick that my statement barely fit. Were they making a case against him?

“Will this be enough to prosecute?” I asked with shaking hands. The lady smiled at me, encouragingly. She was blonde and looked very young.

“I sure hope so, ma’am,” she said with a southern accent.

“Don’t get your hopes on. Men like Tariq get out sooner or later,” a woman with dark hair, who was sitting in the back, listening in, spoke up.

“What do you mean?” Liam asked.

“When powerful men like Tariq get involved, things usually get magically resolved. You just wait. You’re probably going to get a call for a huge settlement fee or Tariq will just be set free because a judge said so,” she shook her shoulders. I felt mine slump. Could Tariq really get out of this so easily?

“This time it involves the royal court. He won’t get out so easily,” Liam assured me and both of the women. I looked at him and nodded.

“Then you better tell the judge right away, so you can arrange a hearing, fast. He has connections and I really want to see him, for once, in a jail cell for longer than a few days,” the officer said. Liam took the number and promised to call the judge straight away. The dark-haired officer nodded at us and when we walked out of the police station, I felt a lot better. _Everything will be okay,_ I assured myself.

When we were back in his limo, Liam called the judge and his lawyers. He set the date a day before his coronation.

“Won’t you be really busy preparing for the coronation?” I asked him and he had a hearty laugh.

“Seriously? You should know this by now, you are way more important than any and I mean ANY event or preperation. What’s there to prepare for? I accept the crown and choose my bride, it’s really easy,” he smiled at me and held my hand. He had told me he loved me but he had never told me if he was going to choose me as his bride. I knew this in my heart that, of course, he would but still, the fact that he didn’t even ask or say it yet made me feel antsy.

“Did you talk to Sarah yet?” Liam asked. I shook my head.

“Not yet. I want to actually talk to her in person and to tell her what happened,” I sighed. I wasn’t going into gruesome details but I knew she had questions and I liked our relationship – we were both honest and upfront with each other and that’s how I wanted it to be. No matter how hard it will be, honesty will always be the best policy in my book.

“I thought I heard you talking to someone,” he mentioned. _Oh!_

“Yeah, I had an unanswered call from my brother so I called him back, to make sure everything’s okay,” I said.

“Your brother? Wow. You know he probably called to check in on you, not the other way around,” Liam smiled.

“I was worried, okay? He never calls me anymore,” I sighed. Liam squeezed my hand.

“I know, I’m sorry. So what happened?”

“Well, he just told me that he was worried about me and we had some pretty awkward chitchat. Before he hung up, he told me that his girlfriend would be pissed again and that he should go. That struck me as weird,” I let out a breath I was holding in.

“That definitely sounds weird. Like a call for help?”

“Yeah, he even told me that I could FaceSpace or call him anytime… But since he mentioned FaceSpace first, I think he actually wants me to message him there,” I said, thoughtfully.

“I think so. Maybe he’ll even tell you what’s happening with the girlfriend,” Liam nodded. So it was decided – I was going to keep in contact with him. Or, at the very least, try to. If he doesn’t reply again, then I won’t keep trying anymore.

The ride was so long, I felt myself getting sleepy and Liam let me sleep on his shoulder. It wasn’t comfortable at first but I fell asleep anyway. I usually didn’t enjoy naps but this one was different. I felt so refreshed and ready to see everyone. I pulled on my leather jacket, when I saw us passing huge golden gates.

“Are we finally here?” I yawned.

“Yes!” Liam smiled. All I could see for miles and miles were fields of lavenders.

“Wow!” I said excitedly.

“The Beaumont Estate is notoriously famous not only for their bashes, but also for their lavender fields, ” Liam smiled. When we finally arrived, I spotted a familiar face standing beside the door and smiling.

“Drake!” I leaped out of the limo into his arms for a hug. I was so excited to see him. The parties were really boring without him there. We really needed a grump in the group.

“I missed you too!” Drake hugged me back.

“How are you here? I thought you’d left for good,” I gasped.

“Well, I promised Liam to be back for his coronation. And when Liam actually called my mother to tell me what happened, how could I stay in America?”

“You were in the US?”

“Yeah, I’m actually half-american, on my mother’s side. She has a ranch in Texas and I knew it’d be great to unwind there. But when Liam called, I had to come back to make sure you all were okay,” he smiled.

“Wait, you actually called his mom? ” I looked at Liam.

“Of course, Drake switched off his phone and it was the only way I’d knew the message would reach him,” Liam nodded.

“Also, I could help with the Tariq case,” Drake said.

“How?”

“My sister. She told me, before she left, that Tariq kept hitting on her and giving her unwanted advances. When I finally stepped in, he backed off. But he was being very aggressive in pursuing her,” he sighed.

“Drake’s statement could also help us make sure that Tariq stays behind bars, because it proves that he stalks the ladies of court and we could use everything we’ve got,” Liam nodded.

“Also, Liam clearly missed me,” he smiled and Liam even… blushed? It was adorable.

“So, Fabiano, how are you, really?” Drake asked when he looked into my eyes.

“Hurt. Sad. Terrified that I have to talk to my daughter about this. But I’ll be okay. Tariq didn’t break me,” I smiled and Drake nodded.

“Glad to hear it. And I hear you threw some aggressive punches,” Drake smiled at Liam. I left the two boys to talk when I saw a red-haired shadow looking from the columns.

“Thank you,” I said, when I moved closer to Olivia. She groaned quietly.

“I thought no one would notice me, if I kept my distance from here,” she said.

“Well, you have a black, sparkly dress on, what did you expect? We all saw you, by the way,” I smiled at her and she smiled back.

“So.. how are you?” she asked. This time it was my turn to groan. Was I going to be asked this everytime I see someone? I knew everyone was just being considarate because of the .. trauma but it already was getting on my nerves.

“I’m dealing with it,” I smiled at her.

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t there sooner. And that I even let you go to the stupid manor,” she sighed.

“Oh gosh, no. Stop. It wasn’t your fault. I was dumb enough to go, if anything, it’s only my fault for being tricked so easily,” I shook my head and she smiled at me.

“You weren’t dumb. You were in love. It kind of blinds you… and makes you see things that aren’t even there. I get it,” she said and looked over at the boys who were chatting excitedly.

“Are you talking about Liam or Drake?”

“Both. I really really liked Drake, you know? When we got together, he was nothing like I imagined him to be. I thought he was grumpy all the time, but he wasn’t. He smiled a lot around me and I felt my walls crumble beneath him and I kind of lost myself for a minute. It wasn’t his fault but I got a little crazy, even abandoned my own duties because I just wanted to be around him all of the time. And then I found out that Liam was going to get married as per tradition because Leo bailed and Liam was stepping in. And I shoved Drake aside because I never imagined that someone like you, Lady Ashley, would even enter the competition. I loved Liam ever since he saved me from being alone in my own duchy. He taught me so much and I really thought that it was meant to be, the difficult road of loneliness was coming to a halt, that I was going to be with my childhood crush and get my happy ever after. I really thought he felt the same for me but it turns out that Liam’s just a very nice person,” she confessed. And this time I really felt for her. She could be so mean but under all of that was a little princess who just wanted love and to be loved. I hugged her and even though she didn’t hug me back, I knew it had meant a lot to her.

“I’m sorry you felt that way,” I said and patted her.

“Me too,” Drake stepped in. Olivia gasped when she saw him walk towards him and I kind of got the feeling that they wanted to be left alone. So I took Liam’s hand and started to walk inside the estate.

“Ashley! How are you?” I heard Hana’s and Maxwell’s voices when we walked into the bright hallway. I looked around the room and this mansion felt way more cozy than the Applewood Manor. The red carpets were eveywhere and they really made me feel wanted here.

“Hey you guys!” I went in for a hug and both of them seemed to appreciate it.

We talked for a while and they ushered us into the kitchen where it felt way more cozy. Hana and Maxwell served us coffee.

“Wow, it’s so empty. Do you even have servants?” I giggled.

“We usually do, we let more than half of them go.. because of the.. eehm, fact that we were staying in the Royal Palace. There’s no need for extra servants when we aren’t here, is there?”

“No, there isn’t,” Liam nodded. I was sure that Liam knew what was the problem but he played along with the charade.

When we told them everything in great detail, I realised that I didn’t know how Olivia and Liam knew to find me, so I asked. Maxwell and Hana shared a look.

“The first clue was that this note wasn’t even written by Liam. It doesn’t match his handwriting,” Hana said and gave me the note from Tariq. I read it again and it sent a shiver down my spine.

“Wait, how do you know Liam’s handwriting?” I raised an eyebrow. They all shared a chuckle.

“Bertrand teaches a class. Which I attended when I was younger. Every noble, when they turn 14, has to write a quote and laminate it in the royal library. There’s a big book of all the quotes written by Cordonian royals. It’s also taught in the curriculum in Cordonia,” Hana said.

“Seriously? It’s even in the curriculum? So little children have to study the handwritings of nobles?” I was surprised.

“Yes, but the curriculum only oversees the reigning monarchs closest family members and the current dukes. Bertrand’s class was much more difficult and it covered a lot more – even the nobility of the past and the future, like Leo and Liam,” Hana smiled.

“Wow. So what was Liam’s quote?” I asked and Liam blushed a little.

“It’s a silly one. “A king isn’t born, he’s made”,” he chuckled and I smiled.

“How fitting. And you weren’t even born for the role of the king but look at you now. I think that teen Liam had a very good intuition,” I smiled and squeezed his hand.

“So what was Leo’s quote? “A king is born but he abdicates”?” Maxwell joked and a chuckle escaped me.

“No, I don’t think Leo’s was that spot on,” Liam shook his head.

“Why did you have to write quotes?” I asked.

“It’s meant to represent our youth. We have to choose a quote while we’re still young and in this childish mindset and when things get hard, we’re supposed to reflect on the quote we’ve chosen, for comfort,” Liam smiled.

“That’s a lot to put on a quote,” I said.

“You’re telling me. I don’t even remember mine!” Maxwell said and smiled at us. Hana looked at him with such a soft look. Something told me that she did remember his.

“Wait, so what happened next?” I asked curiously.

“Olivia tried to get Liam’s attention but there were a lot of people in the way, trying to talk to him so she knew it was a lost cause. So she walked back to us and told us to inform Liam about the note and she ran off to the manor,” Hana continued.

“And so we did. The fireworks were about to start and Liam finally came to our table looking for you and Olivia. We showed him the note and what Olivia told us and he ran to the manor. That’s the last thing we saw,” Maxwell finished.

We all turned to Liam who looked nervous all of a sudden.

“When I walked up the stairs, I heard a struggle, so I ran in to see a big bulky man with sunglasses on, fighting with Olivia. She is agile but it’s still hard when the man is as big as he was. So I distracted the bulky man so that Olivia could get past him to save you,” he smiled at me. So that’s why he wasn’t the first one through the door.

“So how did you get the big man off?”

“I kicked him in the groin a few times and made him sorry that he ever messed with me,” he smiled.

“Was that man also arrested?” Hana asked and we both shook our heads. He wasn’t – he escaped somehow.

“I’m still surprised that you all actually can hold your own in a fight. I thought that is what bodyguards are for,” I looked at the three of them.

“Believe me, some of us have been trained a lot better than some of the bodyguards you see walking around. We’ve had the resources, time and overprotective parents to teach us but none of us are as good with knives as Olivia,” Liam smiled encouragingly. _Woah. This was new._

“Wait, all of you have been trained in combat?”

“Yes,” Hana nodded. Maxwell nodded, too. I was surprised, both of them did not seem like the type to actually know any combat fighting moves.

“And I think you, Rachel and Sarah could only gain from it, too,” Liam said and I shuddered.

I didn’t want to bring my girls into this whole mess. But I knew that they had to be protected.


	17. The Lavender Bash

When I finally saw Sarah, I exploded in tears. The experience scarred me because I really thought that I may never see her again. I didn’t want to let go and she didn’t want to let go either.

“Mommy, what happened to you?” she asked in her angelic voice. So I told her everything. Of course, not the graphic details but that Tariq was a man with bad intentions that wanted to hurt me really really bad and that I was lucky that I was saved by Olivia and Liam. She nodded at every word and held me tight throughout. It was hard to relive the events but I tried my best not to break down. Sarah deserved to feel comfort and she didn’t need a crying mess of a mother.

“Can I sleep with you tonight, mommy?” she asked and I nodded.

“Of course you can,” I answered softly.

“Ahem,” I heard Bertrand cough at the door. He pointed at the door, signaling for me to come outside to talk. I looked at Rachel and she nodded. She understood me without words and for that I was grateful.

“Hi Bertrand,” I said, stepping outside of the door into the lavish hallway.

“Hello Lady Ashley, I just came by to ask you how are you feeling?” he sighed. Bertrand actually looked and sounded worried for a change and that made me worry.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yes, of course. We’re not doing so well financially but you already knew that. But I would like to make sure that you feel safe,” he looked at me expectantly.

“I do, Bertrand. Everything’s fine, Liam made sure of that. So when is the Beaumont Bash?” I smiled at him to brace for the answer.

“To be honest, it was supposed to be tomorrow but I called everyone I could today and postponed it for two more days. We didn’t know if you were okay, first of all. And second, we are not ready, we don’t have as much servants and, of course, we don’t have any cooks. I would love to host the royal court for a few days like Olivia did in Lythikos and that is expected of us, but we can’t afford that right now. I’m just wondering if we should cancel the event altogether, especially since you’ve been attacked and I’m just worried that a silly party is not in anyone’s best interest right now,” he muttered out nervously. I smiled at him. So he was capable of being nice! And I felt so grateful for everything he did do.

“Oh, Bertrand! Thank you so much! But really, I’m okay. Actually, I think that a party would be great, as long as no one asks me a million questions about the attack and maybe it’ll get everyone’s mind off it. I want to get my mind off it, too,” I sighed and Bertrand nodded.

“I understand. At least I bought us some time to get ready for the event,” he nodded.

“Can I help?”

“You just rest for tonight. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he smiled at me and I nodded. Liam stepped in, smiling at us and Bertrand excused himself.

“I’m going to sleep with the girls tonight,” I said to him quickly so he didn’t feel like I was rejecting him in anyway. He’s been my rock and I wouldn’t want to make him feel less than that.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he nodded.

“But I would like an invite to a movie night or two,” Liam added and smiled mischievously.

“I think that can be arranged,” I looked at him playfully and fluttered my eyelashes. He leaned down to kiss me and when he did, I heard the door open and Sarah’s little voice.

“Mommy?” she asked and I turned around to face her. She ran to me and hugged my leg.

“Can Liam join us?” she asked and we both turned to him.

“I would love to but I have some duties to attend to. You should enjoy a night with your mom. I’ll definitely join the next time,” he winked at her. Sarah nodded and we parted ways. Even though me and Liam texted through the Smurf movie, I still missed him. I missed his presence and the way he put his arms around me. It was just one night but I already developed such a longing for him. When we went to the police station together, it felt right. To go somewhere with him, to be next to him. I realised that I could do this a lot. He felt like _the one_. The one I really really needed right now.

When Sarah fell asleep next to me, I couldn’t stop looking at her. How was she so cute? I knew that all moms thought that their children were the best, but mine really was. She was polite, threw her tantrums inside, she was playful, understanding. What couldn’t this kid do? I kissed her forehead and fell asleep.

I was awoken by shouting. Lots and lots of shouting.

“NO, Bertrand you will not cook the chicken yourself!” I heard Olivia shout from downstairs.

“She’s loud,” Sarah said and yawned. She really was. I quickly put the first shorts I could find and a tank top and ran downstairs to look at the commotion.

“What’s going on?” I asked, running inside breathlessly.

“Nothing, Bertrand just wants to RUIN everything,” Olivia looked at him angrily.

“I certainly do not!” he protested.

“The Queen loves chicken cordon bleu not whatever the hell this is,” she pointed at the skillet that had burnt food in it.

“Who said I was finished with it?” he gritted through his teeth.

“Even as a practice round, this is a failure. You will never manage to learn how to make chicken cordon bleu perfectly in time for the bash, it’s in two days! “

“I can achieve a lot in two days!” Bertrand looked annoyed.

“Oh give it up!” she glared at him.

“No,” he answered calmly.

“Then I have no choice but to arrange for my cooks to arrive,” Olivia looked at him angrily.

“You wouldn’t dare! I shall master this as I master everything!” Bertrand said with confidence.

“Oh stop it! You’re making yourself look silly! Accept the help!” she rolled her eyes. Bertrand looked defeated. He let out a big breath.

“I suppose having some professionals from Lythikos won’t hurt,” he nodded, finally.

“Oh wow, that was quick. I thought it’d take a lot more to break you Bertrand,” I smiled at him.

“I can’t see how I can compare to professional cooks. But let me be clear, Duchess Olivia, I won’t pay a cent out of our pockets, you offered your cooks yourself,” he smirked at her. She rolled her eyes.

“Of course, who do you think I am?”

“Very well. Make the arrangements today, because we have lots of planning to do,” Bertrand looked pleased with himself and walked outside the door with a spring in his step.

“Olivia, I think you might have been…”

“Tricked into using my cooks for completely no cost at all? Believe me, I know. But I don’t want to eat Bertrand’s cooking, so the food, at least, is going to be impeccable,” she smiled.

“Have you also got a cleaning crew handy?” I smiled at her.

“Really? You can’t even spare a cleaning crew? And I thought House Beaumont was the greatest house in Cordonia. At least that’s what Bertrand says,” she groaned.

“Well then I hope you’re prepared for some manual labor,” I smiled her way again and she shook her head.

“Okay, okay, you got me! Geez, does everyone want something from me?” she took out her phone and started dialing numbers.

 _Yess!_ _Sucess, I won’t have to clean every little dusty thing here,_ I thought, looking at all of the dusty statues and the windows. They sure looked like they needed a cleaning.

I looked at my own phone – a message from Liam saying that he’s going to be busy until the bash. I sighed loudly. Of course, he would be. He’s going to be a king after all.

Olivia raised an eyebrow.

“Liam’s gone again.”

“To the palace?”

“I think so,” I let out another sigh.

“I’m sorry. I know it’s hard but he has to get his affairs in order before the coronation. Also because he’s going to be engaged at the end of the night of the coronation. That’s a big step,” she smiled at me. I nodded. I did understand but whenever he was gone, I felt like a lost puppy. And that made me feel weird – a few months ago I was just fine on my own but here I was, a lost puppy.

Hana and Maxwell actually made sure that the two days I spent without Liam, went by fast. We played Uno every night with the girls, Drake, Olivia and one night, even with Bertrand. He lost the first round, got angry and left the game, but still.. How many people can say that they beat Bertrand at a card game? I didn’t think he’d be such a sore loser.

We also helped the cooks with the menu and included all of our favorite dishes. Drake didn’t get to add the burgers he wanted but he did manage to slip in the french fries. Then we had a stroll through the lavander fieldsand it felt like a dream. I really couldn’t believe that me, Ashley Fabiano, from New York, had met and fallen in love with a future king. It was so surreal, it only happened in tv shows and movies, didn’t it?

“Mommy, c’mon, ” Sarah said the night before the Bash.

“What is it?”

“I wanna go to the lavender fields again,” she said excitedly.

“Again? But we went there this morning,” I sighed.

“I knoow but I have a surpriseee for youuu,” she giggled.

“What kind of surprise?”

“You’ll like it,” she said and pulled me by my hand.

“Alright, alright, no need to pull so hard,” I laughed and we walked outside of the Beaumont Estate.

“Shouldn’t we bring Rachel?”

“She’s already there,” Sarah smiled.

“What?”

“Yeah, she was very excited, too,” Sarah kept smiling. When we finally reached the lavender fields, I inhaled their scent. It was relaxing, just to be here. All of my worries melted away and the haunting memories started to disappear little by little. I already knew how to remove the gauze painlessly and I was proud of that little achievement.

When we moved in further, I saw Olivia, Drake and Rachel smiling there.

“Hey guys, what’s going on?” I asked and they all kept smiling. I started smiling, too but this felt a little awkward. Rachel pointed to my right and then I saw him.

Liam was standing there with a rose bouquet, smiling. He was wearing his royal suit, of course, and he looked as charming as ever. I couldn’t stop smiling and I looked at all of Liam’s accomplices.

“Oh,you’re sneaky,” I shook my head.

“Oh, we know,” Rachel smiled the most.

“We should probably let them enjoy the date. C’mon girls,” Drake said and took Sarah’s hand. She gladly took it and waved at me.

“Enjoy your daaaate,” she laughed and I did, too.

I walked slowly up to Liam and hugged him. He did it carefully, not to hurt my chest and it made me want to pull him in for a stronger hug.

He pointed at the lavander colored blanket on the ground and the picnic basket.

“I couldn’t wait to see you so I hope you don’t mind,” he smiled at me.

“Oh no, I’m very happy. I missed you so much,” I looked at him and he nodded. We didn’t even really text these days because I knew he was busy and I didn’t want to make myself feel worse if he didn’t respond right away.

“I did ask Sarah to join us,” Liam said, opening the basket.

“Oh? What did she say?”

“She said that she wants to spend some time with Rachel before she goes back to America… Is she going back anytime soon?” he asked.

“Oh. I didn’t even think about that… I completely forgot that she has the last year of high school starting in September. And it’s already August. Wow. Time flies. With you,” I smiled at him.

“I know, this summer has just flown by. I’m sorry, by the way. About your sister, I know how close you both are,” he said slowly. I nodded. I still couldn’t believe that it was almost time for Rachel to go back. I was so grateful for her and her babysitting even here, in Cordonia, where she should have been relaxing more. I made a mental note to arrange her a trip home so she can get everything sorted for school.

“Do you want to go spend some time with your sister, too?” he asked. I think the answer was evident in my behavior. He smiled.

“We could actually watch a movie together, or talk. Or play Uno. I’ve been told Bertrand is a very sore loser,” he smiled and I nodded. I was so happy he actually understood. It really didn’t feel like he minded this at all, so we packed up and walked back into the Beaumont House.

“I thought you were on your date!” Olivia gasped when we came in.

“We wanted to spend some time with the girls,” I smiled at her.

“Oh, they’re with Drake and Bertrand, trying to set up a swing set for tomorrow,” she said.

“Swing set?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Well, there’s going to be a lot of kids tomorrow, all the dukes and duchesses from the.. previous party so Bertrand said that he has to install a bigger and better playground for the children. He’s been at it the whole day and Sarah’s taking a look if it’s going to be good enough,” Olivia said nervously.

“Good enough?” I smiled and we walked through the ballroom to get to the Beaumont Estate’s backyard. It was filled with a lot of workers doing their own thing, building the playground and painting it.

“Mommy, what happened?” Sarah said when she finally noticed us.

“We wanted to spend some time with you,” I smiled.

“We’re just helping them,” Rachel looked at us.

“Yes, I have no clue what children actually desire and these two are of great help!” Bertrand said proudly and showed me some blueprints of the playground.

“Isn’t it too much?” I asked when I saw a glimpse of it.

“There are going to be at least 20 children in attendence, I don’t think it is,” Bertrand shook his head.

“Didn’t you say that you didn’t have any money? How are you building 20 swingsets? Children know how take turns, you know,” I gasped.

“But they don’t have to. And it’s all thanks to Duchess Olivia,” he pointed at Olivia, who was once again, gritting her teeth and had just come outside to take a look.

“Did he get you again?” I giggled.

“No, Sarah’s little puppy dog eyes got me,” Olivia sighed.

“Sarah!” I looked at her sternly.

“But mommmmy! I wanted a big playground so that everyone can have as much fun as they want! And I’m going to visit House Beaumont a lot, a lot, I promise, nothing is going to waste!” she smiled at me.

“Are they actually keeping the playground?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Of course we are!” I heard Maxwell’s voice behind me.

“What for?” Drake crossed his arms.

“For a lot more Beaumont bashes!” Maxwell said and Sarah screamed in excitement.

“To be honest, I’m quite sold. The idea seems great and the five playhouses don’t seem like overkill to me,” Liam giggled beside me.

“Are you messing with me?” I raised my eyebrow at him.

“A little,” he kissed my forehead and smiled at me. His smile made me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

We spent the rest of the evening helping prepare the playground for the bash. I knew that the kids were going to be thrilled, Sarah even convinced Olivia to get ten bouncy castles. _Ten!!!_ She was a natural at negotiating, so I knew that her place was definitely here, not back in New York.

The next morning, I heard the annoying _knock! knock! knock!_ again. I groaned.

“Maxwell, come in!” I said but then I froze. It wasn’t Maxwell at the door. It was Tariq with his creepy smile, holding the knife that he slashed me with. So I screamed. _AAAAAAAAAAAAH!_

“It’s okay, it’s okay, it was just a nightmare,” I felt someone’s hand around me in the darkness. It was Rachel, she was hugging me tight and trying to calm me.

“Thank God, oh my God, I can’t,” I said and shook my head.

“Was it a bad one?” Rachel asked softly.

“It was Tariq holding a knife,” I muttered out with tears in my eyes. Rachel didn’t say a word, she just hugged me until we both fell asleep again.

When I woke up, I pinched myself to make sure that I wasn’t dreaming. But the nightmare still made me feel weird. I knew this was all in my head and I hated it. I hated him for making me feel this way. Why was he like that? Were his parents really his accomplices?

I shook my head. I didn’t have to think about that. About him. All I had to worry about was tonight’s bash and how amazing I wanted to look.

Me and Liam already had decided on a white, long gown that covered my chest area in pretty laces and you couldn’t see my gauze sticking out. The arms were also long and lacey – just how I liked it. Anita helped me with my hair and curled them in big fluffy locks that made me feel like a real princess. Sarah liked it, too.

“Wow, mommy! You look amazing!” she gasped.

“Thank you, so do you!” I said and she smiled at me. Sarah was wearing a white dress, similar to mine and some white ballet flats with big white flowers on them. She was the posterchild for “adorable”. Anita braided her hair into a beautiful fishtail and added a flower on it.

Rachel walked in after her.

“Wow, Ashley, you look like a bride!” she smiled at me.

“I guess… But you already know that I won’t be wearing white at my own wedding,” I smiled at her. She nodded, remembering. I knew that every girl wanted to wear white on her wedding day and that was kind of expected, especially if it was your first wedding. It represents purity, virginity and all that other crap I didn’t really believe in. Ever since I was a child and saw a woman in a telenovela marry in a black wedding dress, I’ve wanted to do the same. Everyone was shocked but the dress was impeccable. Beautiful. She was fierce and loyal, that was what I loved about her. It would be something unexpected, extravagant… and, so me. I’ve never considered myself a symbol of purity and wouldn’t want to represent that either. Some say it’s just a dress and I agree. It is just a dress. And that’s why I want it black.

When I told Anita my idea, she was thrilled. She loved everything that was different and unusual and for that I adored her. Rachel, of course, wasn’t surprised and agreed that everyone should so something they’re comfortable with.

“Could I get big locks like Ash?” Rachel asked Anita. Anita nodded, smiling.

“Someone caught your eye?” she asked gleefully.

“Well, there’s this… duke-to-be, he is charming and sweet and so nice, I think you’d enjoy him,” Rachel smiled back.

“Which one, dear?”

“Duke of Carlsford?” she looked expectantly at Anita.

“Oh yes, that boy is a real ladies man, a real charmer. But he’s not a bad guy from what I hear,” Anita nodded as she was working on Rachel’s hair.

“Rachel loooooves him!” Sarah giggled.

“I do not!”

“But you liiiiiiike him,” Sarah kept teasing her.

“So what?”

“Maybe you’ll get married too,” Sarah suggested. Rachel rolled her eyes and that made me laugh. Their relationship sometimes reminded me of being siblings, not auntie and niece but it was nice to see both of them enjoying themselves. I was afraid of what was going to happen when Rachel actually left. _Rachel was Sarah’s best friend.. and Sarah will have to start an education here._ I shook my head. _You’ll worry about this later. Way later._

“So are we ready?” I smiled and looked at Rachel’s dress that matched ours.

“I’ll miss matching with you guys,” Rachel confessed and me and Sarah nodded.

“But we’ll always be a team!” Sarah said and we all smiled. _Don’t cry, don’t cry,_ I told myself, holding back the tears as we went out of Anita’s room to meet Maxwell and Bertrand. Bertrand, of course, barked orders at us and that when we’re ready, we should greet everyone in the foyer, and to be the most gracious hosts, of course.

“Are we on time?” I asked when both of them were the only ones there, except for the servants running around.

“Of course you are, but we wouldn’t open the doors without you present,” Bertrand said strictly but I saw a hint of a smile. I nodded at him.

“Ready? 3..2..1…” Maxwell said and a servant opened the doors of the Beaumont Estate. And they there were, all of Cordonia’s nobility, in one place. And we met them all. When I say all, I mean ALL. As Anita would’ve said – the bold, the boring and the restless. Some of them seemed really nice but they probably were just nice to our faces. I’ve read the forums with Rachel enough to realize that most of the nobility despised the fact that a commoner like me could get to the throne so “ _easily_ ” as they’ve put it. Some of them, especially, the duchess of Carlsford has even publicly stated that she thinks that it’s ridiculous that House Beaumont has chosen a commoner to represent them. But when she greeted me, she had nothing but smiles and great things to say. I smirked, knowing full well she wouldn’t approve of Rachel fooling around with her son and that she’d be appalled if she found out. Her son, apparently, didn’t have an issue with this and I was happy for her. I knew that it was just a little teenage fling and I knew that once she got back to New York, she’d have to be the perfect little A+ student and she wouldn’t have as much freedom as she did here.

“What a marvelous Estate you have here,” the duchess of Carlsford kept raving on and on. I wanted to roll my eyes so bad but all I did was smile and nod. I smiled at their son who was standing there shyly. He looked like a decent enough guy. And from what Rachel has told me, he was also really sweet. I appreciated that even more after meeting his parents. They were ridiculously boring. When her husband finally got her away from us, I sighed in relief.

“Imagine having her as your mother-in-law,” Maxwell said.

“Oh God, I would lose my mind,” I chuckled.

“Well, Rachel might,” Maxwell whispered so that Bertrand and Rachel couldn’t hear us.

“Oh, stop, it’s just a fling. Teenage love, it’s cute, innocent. She probably won’t end up marrying him,” I shook my head.

“Just like you wouldn’t end up marrying a prince?” Maxwell winked and that made me giggle.

“Teenagers don’t go the distance,” I shook my head again.

When we finally greeted everyone, we were able to go into the ballroom and quickly mingle before Bertrand called everyone to their seats for dinner.

Hana pulled me away quickly while Sarah was running around with some children.

“Has Maxwell talked to you yet?” she asked nervously.

“About what?”

“We’ve decided to be in a relationship!” she hugged me.

“Whaaaat? Congratulations! This is awesome! You’ve made it official way before I did, I’m kind of jealous of you,” I chuckled and hugged her back.

“Well, not really… We can’t really make it official or known to anyone before Liam chooses his bride because I’m still considered a suitor,” she sighed.

“That sucks. And you’re also one of the top suitors, as I’ve heard,” I nodded.

“I know but me and Maxwell talked everything over and we actually have a plan how to make it known to everyone after the coronation but in a way that looks like we started dating after the coronation…” Hana said seriously.

“Wooow, you’ve really given this some thought. So what happened? Did he ask to be your boyfriend? Spill!” I was excited.

“Well, we were in the lavender fields in the evening, talking, flirting and one thing lead to another and he just asked if we should just be together. And I said yes, I really really like him, Ashley,” she confessed and giggled like a school girl.

“Wait, we were in the lavender fields yesterday evening, we didn’t see you there,” I looked at her suspiciously and she blushed.

“We were so glad that you weren’t staying there. When we heard everyone coming there, we had to hide!” she smiled.

“Hana, did you do _it_ there?” I gasped.

“Maybe,” she chuckled.

“Hana!”

“What?” she kept chuckling.

“You look happy. It suits you,” and as I said the words, she beamed. Bertrand called for everyone’s attention.

“Welcome everyone, find your seats and the dinner will start shortly,” he said and everyone cheered. I looked at Hana sadly.

“I wish we could sit together,” I sighed.

“I know. It will be a weird dinner without you or Drake by my side. I guess I should take my seat with the other ladies,” Hana agreed.

“Well, Drake’s probably not going to miss us at all, ” I pointed with my head to where he was standing and having a heated discussion with Olivia. She was in a red sparkly gown, very gorgeous, while he was still in his denim jacket, one hand in the pocket of his jeans.

“Is it just me or is there something still there?” Hana turned to me.

“There’s definitely some fire going on between them. I don’t doubt it for a second,” I smiled.

When I finally got to my seat next to Liam, he was already there, smiling fondly at me. I smiled back. He was wearing a white suit and matching me. We actually looked like a couple and that made my heart leap. Sarah took her seat next to me and someone took a picture of us. I shook my head when I saw that it was Maxwell.

“Someone had to take that nice photo of you,” he shrugged. Sarah giggled. Everyone quickly took their seats and the servants were running up and down, bringing plates with hot chicken cordon bleu to everyone.

“Duke Ramsford! Did you know that chicken cordon bleu is my favorite dish?” she smiled at him. Bertrand smiled proudly.

“Of course, I did, Your Majesty. You deserve nothing but the best,” he said and Regina nodded thoughtfully.

“I appreciate that,” she finally added.

“House Beaumont certainly has outdone itself. The food is delicious, the wine is superb and the setting is marvellous, Duke Ramsford. Your House is certainly deserving of its reputation,” the King nodded.

“Thank you, sir. I regret that we could only host you for one night..” Bertrand sighed.

“I’m happy enough that the event wasn’t cancelled altogether. The social season is also coming to an end so we must return to the palace. There are a lot of things I have to teach and show Prince Liam before the coronation takes place, ” he smiled when he looked at Bertrand.

“Speaking of which – Liam, do you know who do you want to marry?” Maxwell asked and everyone gasped. It made me giggle a little bit, of course, it would be Maxwell to ask these kinds of questions. Sarah smiled next to me.

“I do,” Liam smiled.

“Now now, don’t reveal it before the coronation, it would not be proper,” the King seemed agitated all of a sudden. I realised that it was probably he knew it was going to be me. Was the King opposed to me? Did he not like me? Or was there something.. different? I shook those thoughts out of my head, I didn’t need any more insecurities – at least not right now.

Everyone else kept chatting while I was trying to catch my breath. Something was wrong but I couldn’t quite place it. I just shook the weird feeling away, this was a party, why wasn’t I capable of enjoying it?


	18. Never Have I Ever

The King and the Queen excused themselves to their rooms but not before wishing us a great Bash. The King smirked, he probably knew the reputation of the legendary Beaumont Bashes and knew what all of the royals would be up to.

I spent the first part of the evening with Sarah. Rachel joined us and we walked to the playground area that we helped design and watched Sarah interact with the other kids while Liam, Maxwell and Bertrand were mingling with everyone.

“You know, since you are going to be the next Queen of Cordonia, you probably should mingle, too,” Rachel said.

“But I want to stay here,” I softly said.

“Here? In the playground? Are you serious? You didn’t enjoy the playgrounds in America,” Rachel chuckled.

“I know but I do enjoy your company. And Sarah’s,” I said.

“I don’t mind being with her,” she said thoughtfully.

“Are you trying to get rid of me?” I chuckled.

“Well, I kind of asked someone to join me here and you’re ruining the vibe,” she blushed.

“Wait, you actually want me to disappear because you’ve got a date in the playground?” I chuckled.

“Ashley!”

“What?”

“He’s so cute…” she said. I nodded. That he was.

“You know, I’ll be here, you go enjoy yourself for a change,” I smiled at her.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Rachel kissed my cheek and ran off. Oh, _young love._

I looked at Sarah, the product of my _young love_. She was interacting with other kids, finally, and not being shy about it. I was proud of her – finally she felt comfortable enough to talk to the other children. That was no small feat in my eyes.

While I was watching her and daydreaming, I saw my favorite redhead sulking.

“Olivia! Is everything okay?” I shouted at her and she walked up to me.

“Geez, no need to shout my problems to everyone!” she answered coldly.

“I’m sorry, but what’s wrong?”

“Drake. He’s being silly,” she walked quickly towards me and took a seat next to me.

“About what?”

“I think everyone already knows this, but I want to get back together with him while he just wants to be friends for a while to sort himself out. Didn’t he already do that by running away?” she groaned.

“Olivia… You can’t always get your way,” I shook my head.

“Why not? My way is great, I’m great. Why doesn’t he want to be with me?” she looked into my eyes and I truly felt sorry for her. Rejection hurt, especially if you weren’t used to it.

“I don’t think he’s over the hurt you caused him… “

“Oh, stop it. We were dating for only a few months, he wasn’t serious about us yet…” she looked away.

“Wasn’t he? He said that he was crushing on you the whole time he knew you. Then you do end up together. And then you dump him to be with his best friend. Trust me, that has got to hurt… a lot. Especially, since he has always felt like the outsider of court. That doesn’t go away that easily,” I shook my head. Olivia looked back at me.

“Oh God. I sound really selfish to you, don’t I?” she gasped. I nodded.

“I just.. want him. So bad. I can’t believe I screwed everything up and I’m doing it again and again,” she sighed.

“It will be okay, in time, Olivia,” I patted her shoulder. We kept watching Sarah bouncing on the castle with her new friends. Watching her, I realised that in no time, she will be all grown up. Why couldn’t time slow down, just for one night? One measly evening?

It started to get darker and darker, so I asked Sarah if she was ready for bed. She shook her, head of course.

“Five more minutes, mommy!” she begged. After the five minutes and five MORE minutes, I just ran inside the bouncy castle to get her. The other kids kept running around with no care in the world, the nannies didn’t seem to care about the bedtime for the children. After a whole lot of bribing, Sarah finally agreed that it was her bedtime, so we slowly went inside where Rachel was running towards us.

“Thank you, thank you!” she gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

“For what?”

“For letting me go, it was great! But, wait, where are you going?”

“It’s my bedtime, silly!” Sarah sticked out her tongue.

“Can I put her to bed, please? You deserve to enjoy the party as much as I did,” she smiled at me. I nodded and said my goodbye to my daughter.

“But I wanted mommy to read me a bedtime story,” Sarah frowned.

“I’ll read you as many as you want!” Rachel said and she finally agreed. We hugged and kissed and then they left me to wander the halls alone, when I finally heard someone shout my name.

“ASHLEYY,” it was Maxwell.

“What?”

“Is Sarah asleep?”

“No but Rachel just took her to bed, what is it?”

“It’s time to announce the Bash!” he seemed excited.

“Didn’t we already?” I raised my eyebrow.

“No, that was just the dinner and mingling portion. Now we have to REALLY announce it – with some flair,” he smiled and took my hand. He took me to the grand staircase where Bertrand was already standing.

“What’s going on? Most of the kids are still outside, you know,” I said.

“Their parents should take better care of them then,” Bertrand said without a care in the world and that made me chuckle. Could this be that I finally get to see fun Bertrand for a change?

“Bertrand is going to say a few words beforehand and then all three of us bash these squid shaped bottles on the staircase,” Maxwell said excitedly.

“Isn’t this unsafe?”

“Oh, dear Ashley… The Beaumont Bash isn’t safe at all. Besides, it’ll be okay. Probably. Just don’t throw the bottle at anyone, just smash it on the handrails of the stairs and you’ll do great!” he said.

“Maxwell, you’re crazy,” I chuckled again.

“Of course. Bertrand!”

“Yes, yes, I’ll start. Where is that damn microphone?” Bertrand asked and both of them plugged the microphone into the speaker. Well, Maxwell was plugging it, while Bertrand fidgeted with the microphone nervously.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to announce this party, please gather around the grand staircase area!” as he said the words, people were starting to flock around us. All of their eyes were on us and that made me feel a little uneasy but when I saw Liam, who was staring at me, from the back and smiling at me, I felt a lot safer. I knew these people were judging me again like they’ve been doing this whole time but it was way easier when I realised that there were plenty of people on my side, too. Olivia and Drake popped up to stand next to Liam and they shared a chuckle. Hana was standing shyly on the side by herself, watching us. Well, watching Maxwell. But she looked so happy. Happier than I’ve seen her ever since coming to court.

“I wanted to thank every single one of you for attending this Bash. It’s a very special occasion for our house since we’re finally in the running for the Prince’s hand. We’re sponsoring a very strong lady who isn’t afraid of hard work or commitment and she’s also a great role-model. I dedicate this evening to her,” as Bertrand said the words, I was in awe. I wasn’t expecting this at all.

“Ashley, Ashley, Ashley!” Maxwell started a chant going. I heard people chanting my name again and it felt surreal. I smiled politely at the crowd. Bertrand passed me the microphone and I widened my eyes. I wasn’t ready to give a speech yet! _Yikes!_

“Thank you for having me in House Beaumont. You’ve both been so welcoming and forthcoming even though I had no clue what I was doing. You helped me overcome obstacles, made take Bertrand’s classes until 4 AM and made me feel like I could actually belong, I consider you not only my sponsors but also my brothers,” I smiled at them. They really didn’t feel like just ordinary guys I knew, I felt a connection with both of the brothers and I was very fond of them. I actually was close to both of them and at this moment I realised that it was because I wanted my own relationship with my brother to be this strong. They were there when it counted, they’ve helped me with Sarah, we fought, had disagreements but in the end, we all were there for each other. That’s all I’ve ever wanted from Tom, to be there. And it stung a little bit that these people that I’ve known merely for months wanted and actually cherished this type of a relationship with me but Tom, my first best friend, the person I’ve looked up to growing up, didn’t.

“To brotherhood! Let’s start this bash!” Maxwell said and on three, all three of us smashed our bottles on the handrails. The glass was everywhere, alcohol spilled over the rails but no one seemed to care about the mess. _I hope I’m not the one cleaning this up tomorrow morning_ , I thought to myself but kept smiling at everyone. The crowd cheered but Liam just kept looking at me. When we descended the stairs, there was music blasting from the speakers and everyone broke into a dance. These royals were really loving all the partying. But knowing how much they actually trained in their early life, they deserved some parties here and there, to let off some steam. One of the biggest things I’ve realised since coming here was that noble life wasn’t for everyone and that it was hard work. The etiquette, the rules, the things you had to learn and master to attract people to you. You had to learn about legislation, attend meetings, decide what’s best for the people living in your duchy and you had to make sure they were happy. It was overwhelming even.

Liam danced his way over to me and pulled me close to him.

“You were great,” he whispered in my ear and interrupted my deep thoughts.

“I’m not a good improv speaker, though,” I smiled at him.

“You’re.. you’re something else,” Liam held me in his arms and we started slow dancing, I was just following his steps and leaned into him. After a couple of songs, I felt a tap on my shoulder.

“Hey guys, we wanted to play some drinking games in the downstairs cellar, are you up for it?” Drake shouted when he sneaked up on us. Well, not really sneaked, to be fair, but it was hard to hear him through the music that was blaring from all the speakers that Maxwell installed. It felt like the music was going through me.

Liam took me by my hand, looked at me and I nodded. I did want to enjoy my time here with the people closest to me. When we walked downstairs, I was surprised to see Bertrand. He usually wasn’t present in our little group things. I actually didn’t even consider him a part of our group yet. Maxwell and Hana were sitting together comfortably and she smiled at me.

“Maxwell, I thought that you’d be dancing,” I chuckled.

“Oh, I will be, after I’ll get drunk enough,” he nodded. Hana elbowed him playfully.

“Whaat? You’ll be dancing with me, don’t worry!”

“So what are we playing?” Liam asked.

“Anything, Olivia hasn’t played any of the drinking games,” Drake chuckled.

“Neither have I,” Hana added.

“I also haven’t participated much,” Bertrand said. No one even questioned it, Bertrand and Hana were not the type to play drinking games. I was surprised that Olivia hadn’t played any, she seemed like the type that would enjoy these things.

“Why don’t we start with a simple one then? Never have I ever?” I suggested.

“YESS! I will get drunk so fast!” Maxwell cheered.

“What are the rules?” Bertrand asked and we all rolled our eyes. Liam and Drake explained it to him and he seemed to understand, after the third or fourth explanation.

“The game is self explanatory, Bertrand. It’s in the name, isn’t it?” Olivia seemed annoyed with his antics.

“I’ll start!” Maxwell said and we all sat down in a circle.

“Never have I ever been chased by a cat!” he said and we all looked around. It was a strange thing to say, wasn’t it? Then we saw Bertrand taking a sip.

“Maxwell! You promised you’d never tell!” he was annoyed.

“It was almost ten years ago and I still find that funny,” Maxwell giggled.

“I thought it was a dog! Okay, here’s a fun one for you – never have I ever been arrested,” Bertrand smirked and Maxwell took a sip. We gasped. I did most of the gasping but we were all shocked.

“What? I was speeding and told an inappropriate joke to a police officer who wasn’t a fan. What could I do?” he shrugged. I rolled my eyes.

“Guys, let’s not embarrass each other over this,” I said.

“But isn’t that the point? To get us to confess to our darkest secrets and make us embarrassed about them?” Olivia asked.

“It’s meant to be light and fun,” I answered.

“Oh, Ashley. Don’t you understand? This is fun for me,” she smirked.

“Well, here’s one none of you have probably done. Never have I ever eaten food from a trash can,” I said and gasped when Maxwell, Drake and Liam took a sip. I looked at Hana and she was also shocked to learn this.

“What? Really?”

“They all lost a bet, to me,” Olivia smirked. But she actually looked proud. I raised an eyebrow. It was hard to figure out her motives but she did have a good heart, I knew this.

“Hey, we’re not all high and mighty, okay?” Maxwell laughed.

The game went on for a while – it was fun to get to know everyone from the group a lot closer. I found out that Olivia owned a small farm in Lythikos, has been skydiving and loves fast-food, especially when she’s alone and wants a pick-me up. Bertrand talks to himself in public all of the time with an earpiece in his ear so that people wouldn’t think he’s going crazy, had never held a baby in his arms before and hated swimming. Drake had been kicked out of three bars, had shot someone accidentally in Texas and enjoyed watching reality-tv shows like America’s Most Eligible because he liked trashing them. Maxwell had never cooked his own food, had gotten a hippo tattoo on his chest and was a classically trained dancer. Hana secretly watched all of “The Crown and The Flame” episodes on her parent’s TV while they were on a business trip, broke their most expensive bottle of alcohol and blamed it on the dog, acted sick when she wasn’t to get out of going to royal events. Liam had dreamed of becoming a king even before his brother abdicated, had a secret pet bird that he and Drake kept feeding until it flew away and had kept a secret diary for most of his life.

By the end of the game, we were all pretty drunk and feeling woozy. When we finally walked out of the cellar, it looked like the party had winded down.

“They all need some Maxwell moves to keep the party going!” Maxwell shouted and took Hana by the hand. They started dancing and people were starting to cheer them up. You could feel the energy going up again and a lot of the royals started dancing alongside them.

“How quaint that you finally decided to join us, ” Madeleine said when she approached our group with a glass of champagne in her hand. She looked pissed.

“What’s wrong Madeleine?” I asked casually. She eyed me carefully.

“You think you’re so great, don’t you? Having Liam all to yourself the whole time. Others want him, too, you know?” she said angrily.

“Madeleine, I think you’ve had too much to drink,” Liam stepped in front of me and she looked surprised.

“Really? Defending her? _A commoner?_ How low will the royal family stoop this time?” she mocked.

“Watch it, commoner or not, she may become the next queen,” Olivia said stepping in front of me. I cheered on the inside. _She was on my side!_

“You’re just pissed that you have no chance to become a queen this time,” Drake stepped up, too.

“I’m done wasting my breath on the likes of you,” as Madeleine said her words, she walked away quickly. We all looked around confusedly.

“She’s just drunk and angry, I wouldn’t take her seriously,” Olivia shook her head.

“Doesn’t she know that after the coronation she has to support Ashley?” Drake also shook his head.

“What do you mean – has to?” I widened my eyes.

“Well, after I’ve chosen my bride, all of the other suitors have to go on an engagement tour with us, to show the support for the crown, so of course, she has to do it, too, ” Liam nodded.

“This just gets better and better,” I giggled, enjoying the thought of Madeleine having to publicly support me, and Liam took my hand. We danced the night away and it felt so right, to melt into his arms. I also felt a lot braver than I did before but it was all the wine I drank. I pressed a kiss on him right before everyone and they gasped. Liam widened his eyes.

“Oh, like everyone hasn’t seen us dancing together all night,” I raised my eyebrow and he smiled.

“Everyone’s been keeping their eye on _you_ ,” he said softly.

“Me? No, _you’re_ the Crown Prince,” I shook my head and followed his lead.

“Oh no, my dear. Everyone’s watching _you_ , ” he spun me so that I could see the dancefloor. And he was right, people were actually watching me dance. It actually felt thrilling, to know all of their eyes were on me. I usually was never a fan of the spotlight but tonight, I didn’t mind it one bit. The party went out for hours, Maxwell couldn’t stop dancing, Kiara and Penelope were passed out on the floor, either from exhaustion or having too much alcohol in their system,vand I was talking to Liam, in the kitchen about everything. Literally everything, we talked about animals, children, aliens, people we’d like to meet someday, the best phone companies in Cordonia.. you name it.

“Do you want to watch the sunrise?” he asked, looking at his watch impatiently.

“You don’t have to ask me twice,” I pulled his hand and we quickly walked through the mansion, looking at the few remaining royals that were awake. There were not many, just about three or four, if you count Maxwell.

We rushed to the lavender fields and it was magnificent. It felt like a new start, a new beginning for my life. I wasn’t afraid of what it meant anymore, it felt like I was in the right place, at the right time. I strongly felt that everything happened for a reason and the reason was Sarah and Liam. The loves of my life. Liam put his jacket over me and I smiled.

“I wish Sarah was here to see this,” Liam smiled.

“I don’t,” I shook my head.

“What?”

“I don’t want her to see her mother drunk,” I giggled.

“You don’t look drunk at all.. you look happy,” he turned to me.

“That’s because I am. I am drunk AND happy,” as I said the words, I felt happy. Really truly happy. Liam held me in his arms and I leaned into him.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Mommy, wake uuuuuup!” I heard Sarah’s voice beside me.

“Ugh,” I groaned. My head hurt and I didn’t feel good at all. I was still wearing last night’s dress and I felt sweaty and disgusting. And parched. A lot of feelings but none of them pleasant.

“What time is it?” I asked when I looked at Sarah and she shrugged. She ran to Rachel who was still snoring on the ground.

“Racheeeel! What time is it?” she asked sweetly.

“What? Ugh,” Rachel groaned as she opened her eyes.

“I don’t feel so good,” she said and I agreed.

“Why?” Sarah asked.

“We had a bit too much fun yesterday, love,” I said when I turned to her.

“Without me?” she gasped.

“Adult fun, hun,” I patted her head and looked at my phone. It was 9 AM. That explained why I felt like I was being run over by a truck.

“Sarah, I thought we were playing hide and seek!” I heard Olivia’s voice and she popped her head in the door.

“I wanted mommy to wake up!” she protested.

“But we had a deal, you let mommy rest, we play some games!” Olivia said the words with such excitement that I started to wonder if that was really her or it was her clone.

“I just need a shower and I’m good to go,” as I started to stand up, Olivia walked over and sat me down on the bed.

“Honestly, you need some rest and you deserve it,” she smirked.

“But you’re okay,” I pointed at her. She looked fresh like a daisy. And she drank a lot.

“I’m a Nevrakis, I bounce back. Not everyone can tolerate parties as well as I do, so suck it up, Fabiano and help your sister to get into bed,” Olivia pointed at Rachel who was still lying on the ground. I nodded. I guess I did need help today.

“Thank you,” I whispered to her and she nodded. I finally got Rachel onto her bed and didn’t have any energy to go to my own, so I crashed beside her.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“I’d love to have a baby brother or a sister. Yes, I have a niece but it’s not same, ” I heard Rachel’s voice when I finally opened my eyes. My head didn’t hurt as much and my vision wasn’t blurry, I felt a lot better than the first time I woke up. I looked at my phone – 12:49 PM. _Yes, I didn’t sleep through a whole day!_

“Okay shh now, my sister woke up,” she turned to me and I pointed at the shower, asking her if there was anyone there.

“You can go there,” she mouthed and kept talking on the phone.

After a nice shower and teeth brushing, I finally felt like a real human being. I changed into some jean shorts and a turtleneck jumper. When I walked out of the room, Rachel mouthed “you look good!”.

“Where’s Sarah?” I mouthed at her.

“The last I saw them, she and Liam were heading for the bouncy castles,” she mouthed back and kept talking to the person on the other end. I smiled when I thought of Liam and Sarah jumping in the castle, it was probably too cute.

“The duke?” I mouthed and she nodded. I gave her a thumbs up and closed the door. I knew I shouldn’t worry because Rachel was a really smart girl but it felt a bit too familiar. I just hoped that she wouldn’t get too attached to him. _Oh, she’s young and smart, she wouldn’t do that_ , I shook the thoughts out of my head.

While I was walking past Beaumont study, I heard someone in there. I walked in, hoping it was Bertrand, to thank him for the party but instead of him, I found Drake, looking through the Beaumont desk.

“What’s going on?” I put my hand on my hip.

“Nothing,” his voice was merely a whisper.

“If it’s nothing, then why are you whispering?”

“Okay, you got me, it’s not nothing, what do you want from me?”

“I just want to know what is going on?”

“I’m just… trying to find .. things about my sister,” his shoulders slumped.

“What?” I gasped.

“Shhhhh!” he shushed me.

“Why?”

“It just felt so sudden, you know? One day after these Bashes she just… was gone. Out of my life forever. And it always had felt wrong. It never felt like she left because she actually wanted to and that always disturbed me, the way she left. She wouldn’t have done that if it wasn’t something important. I was just wondering that maybe Bertrand had some.. letters from her. Or something. Maybe he knew much more about her departure than he lead on,” Drake sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

“Have you even asked Bertrand about this?”

“I have… but he just told me off. That he didn’t know and it was it, it always felt unbelievable…” Drake sighed again and I knew it must be frustrating, so I decided to help him look for a little while until I stumbled upon an envelope.

“Look! There’s an envelope full of cash.. with a French address, meant to be sent out tomorrow,” I showed Drake.

“Weren’t they supposed to not have any money?” he raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, that’s why Bertrand tricked Olivia into hiring her crew for the party,” I couldn’t stop looking at the envelope. It was a lot of cash. A lot more than people carry around with them.

“This is way too much for a House implying that they have no money,” Drake said and I agreed. We heard footsteps, so I quickly closed the drawer. Maxwell peeked through the door and lit up when he saw us.

“Oh, hey Ashley, I got a letter addressed to you!” he handed me a heavy envelope.

“I can get letters?” I gasped. He nodded. I didn’t even get to look at who’s the letter from because Drake spoke first.

“Maxwell, we also found a letter,” Drake handed him the big envelope full of cash.

“Oh great, you found it!” Maxwell smiled nervously.

“Who’s that for?” I raised my eyebrow.

“Oh, it’s for the caterers.”

“Olivia hired the caterers, ” Drake eyed him nervously.

“Yes, well, it was for something, that I do know! I’ll just take this and tell Bertrand that we found the money. Thanks guys, you were such big help! I gotta go now,” Maxwell quickly bolted.

“Was it just me or was Maxwell being really…”

“Nervous and weird?” I finished Drake’s sentence and nodded.

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Drake said.

“You should, that was super suspicious. Something’s weird with him,” I said and opened up my own letter.

“So, what does yours say and who is it from?”

“Son of a bitch…” I cursed under my breath.

“Paul sucks even more than he did before,” Drake gasped.

“I can’t believe Paul’s suing me for Sarah’s custody,” I was in shock. And yet he was. If he thought that this was going to go without a fight, it meant he knew nothing about me. Yet, I was nervous, not because of the custody hearing, because I knew I had it in the bag. I had to have the most dreaded conversation – I had to finally tell Sarah the truth about her father and what was happening. Paul sucked. _Really bad._


	19. Change of Plans

“So when are you going to tell her?” Drake asked when we were in Liam’s limo, heading to the court hearing for Tariq.

“I want to get through today first,” I sighed. We were heading to my court hearing to make sure that Tariq gets locked up, for good this time. My hands were shaking and I was nervous of seeing him again. He was haunting me in my nightmares and I didn’t like it one bit.

Drake seemed annoyed with my answer but I couldn’t tell him anything since I didn’t know anything myself. Paul actually got his lawyer to send a letter to House Beaumont addressed to me to try to get full custody of Sarah. That was ridiculous, there was no way a judge would grant that to a deadbeat father who couldn’t even tell me about his plans beforehand. I inhaled loudly.

“One problem at a time, Drake,” Liam said, holding my hand. We were holding each other up these past few days and it meant everything to me. I comforted him about his duties as King when his father overwhelmed him and he calmed me down when I got angry at Paul. We were keeping each other level-headed and that’s what the both of us needed. I’ve been spending time with Sarah and trying to talk to her about her father but I couldn’t. I couldn’t do that yet. I realized that it was not about just Sarah. It was mostly about me. I was angry that because of him I had to become a single mother, lie to my family, lie to everyone I’ve loved. And for what? For someone who tossed me and the baby away like we were trash. She didn’t deserve it, neither did I. I didn’t give myself any time to grieve about the situation, I went head-in first, caring about the baby and finishing school, that I never stopped to think what kind of toll the break up took on me. How could I tell her that her father never wanted us in his life? And even more, he was getting married to a new woman? She doesn’t even know the man and he wants her at his wedding? Just the thought of the situation angered me. I wanted to cry at the absurdity but I had to keep it together, the plate was too full for me to break down. I had to deal with Tariq first, get Rachel home and then deal with Paul… I didn’t know which of the situations was worse – seeing Tariq again, actually getting Rachel back to New York and missing her a lot or dealing with Paul in court.

“One breath at a time, ” Hana told me and patted my shoulder. I nodded. I really needed that right now. We slowly stepped out of the car and Olivia passed me a cigarette and a lighter. I raised an eyebrow at her. Everyone did.

“Oh what? Like you’ve never smoked,” she crossed her arms. I smiled at her. Of course, I smoked. I smoked a lot as a teen but when I found out that I’m pregnant, I couldn’t take one more puff. I took the cigarette and lighter and nodded at her.

“Wait, Ashley, are you really going to..?” Maxwell raised an eyebrow at me now.

“Doesn’t she deserve it?” Drake turned to him.

“Well, then I could argue that we all deserve a smoke,” Maxwell replied.

“Wow, Maxwell, I didn’t peg you for the judgy kind,” Olivia smirked.

“Who’s judgy? I’m not judgy! I’m just surprised that she would, knowing all the chemicals that are in there,” Maxwell gasped.

“You’re being judgy,” Drake answered slowly.

“So be it, I judge people who smoke! ” Maxwell lifted his arms up.

“Maxwell!” Hana nudged him.

“Isn’t it my body – my choice?” I smiled at him.

“Well yeah, your choice to be stupid, you mean,” Maxwell argued.

“You know what I’d call stupid? The hippo tattoo you have all over your chest,” Olivia looked at him.

“Okay, I get it. Smoke ahead but know this – your body won’t thank you for this!” Maxwell screamed behind me, Olivia and Drake. We were walking away so I could actually take a smoke.

“Neither will yours if you keep drinking that much at parties!” I retorted and that seemed to shut him up.

“Who knew that Mr Sillypants was also Mr Judgypants?” Olivia asked, lighting her own cigarette.

“Not me, I’m still in shock over it,” I said.

“Are you a chainsmoker, Olivia?” Drake turned to her and she blushed.

“N-no, I just do it in very stressful situations. This is a stressful situation, no?” Olivia smiled at him nervously.

“I just don’t recall you smoking at all,” he smiled at her softly.

“Well, things change, Walker,” she said angrily and threw her half-smoked cigarette in the trash.

“Wow, what happened between you two?” I turned to him and he shrugged.

“I honestly have no clue. She’s so distant one moment, but so soft the next, I can’t figure her out,” Drake sighed.

“That describes Olivia perfectly,” I nodded and we walked back slowly to the others. I knew I reeked of smoke but I felt much calmer than I did before.

“Ready?” Liam turned to me and held out his hand. I took it and we slowly walked up the stairs of the police station. The building was made up of white stones and didn’t seem to inviting, despite being a police station. I was nervous and Liam felt that, so he held my hand very tight. He opened the door of the station and the blonde nice woman who took my statement in the morning, ran up to us.

“What’s wrong? Why are you here?” she asked.

“What do you mean? I’m here for my court hearing,” I answered nervously. Did something happen?

“You didn’t hear?”

“Hear what?” Liam asked, stepping protectively in front of me.

“Tariq’s… been released,” she looked defeated. _WHAT?_ I gasped loudly. How could they let him go? Just like that?

“Wh-why?” I asked softly.

“The judge came down to the police station about 2 hours ago and demanded that he got released immediately and that the charges have been dropped, despite our protests,” she slumped her shoulders.

“Why would he do that?” Liam demanded the answer.

“I… I have no clue, sir. The judge has all the authority so we all obliged. He said that Tariq had someone powerful on his side and he had to listen to that person or else… He did it with a heavy heart, I’m sure,” the poor girl started to crumble between our eyes. She felt so bad and so defenseless and Liam’s angry demeanor didn’t help at all.

“Why didn’t anyone contact us?” I asked in a friendly voice and held Liam’s hand so that he’d calm down.

“I’ve got no clue why or what really happened, I’m sorry, I can’t be more help beyond this point,” she bowed her head to Liam and he got visibly angrier.

“Where is the judge right now?” he gritted through his teeth.

“He went on a early vacation,” a voice stepped in front of us. It was the dark black haired woman who warned us the first time. Liam balled up his hands into fists, I could feel his frustration.

“Sorry, you should’ve been quicker. I told you that someone powerful is protecting him,” the woman crossed her arms. Liam ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

“I can give you the judge’s personal phone number, you can try to blow it up, maybe he’ll answer to the Crown Prince,” she said.

“That’d be nice,” I smiled at her as nicely as I could.

“Do you know anything about where Tariq could be heading right now?” Liam asked her, pleadingly.

“The only thing I know is that he’s out of the country, we just saw him on the news, boarding his private plane,” she sighed in frustration.

“Sorry that we couldn’t be more helpful in this, we even tried to stall the judge. We really wanted to see Tariq behind bars,” the blonde woman spoke again. I smiled both of them, they were trying their best.

“Thank you for all your help anyway,” I sighed. It was frustrating to us but probably even more frustrating to them since they’ve been gathering evidence against Tariq… Someone powerful was at play here. But who?

When we stepped out of the police station, I felt defeated. What happened back there? Why was Tariq being protected by someone? How could that someone be more important than the Crown Prince of Cordonia?

“Fuck, ” Liam muttered under his breath. I nodded.

“I’m not letting you out of my sight,” he looked at me.

“How could this even happen?” Olivia was in shock, too. We all rode home in silence. It was especially hard since we expected a win and even organized a little celebration in our honor but we had to tell Bertrand that we failed. And we failed by a longshot. He was stunned.

“How dare the judge do this! He is very incompetant, he needs to be removed!” Bertrand was angry.

“I agree. That’s one of the first things I’ll do as the King of Cordonia, I’ll remove the judge responsible from office, this isn’t acceptable. Letting a maniac go? Who knows how many girls he’ll abuse elsewhere,” he shook his head and we all nodded in agreement. Who knows what Tariq could do, especially in a country that doesn’t recognize him… I shuddered at the thought. It scared me. Scared at what other things he’s capable of.

Rachel had her flight the day after the coronation and the thought broke me inside. She was going back, to her regular life and without her, it wouldn’t feel the same. At all. She also didn’t look too happy to go back but I knew that she had to resume her life, or at least finish high school. She had friends there and a life. And our parents. I did miss them but I was just happy to be on my own for the first time, it was liberating. I could be as loud or quiet as I wanted, no one expected me home and it, honestly, helped that there was a fully stocked fridge every night and we had all the snacks I wanted.

I hugged her when we came back and when she asked me what’s wrong, I couldn’t bring myself to tell her right away, so we just stood there, hugging, in silence. Sarah ran up to us and joined in the hug. It was so nice. Comforting. They used to be the only people I actually relied on, except, of course, for my parents. I finally turned to face them.

“Nothing went according to plan,” I sighed, looking at the girls.

“What happened?” Rachel gasped.

“He got away,” I felt defeated yet again when I had to admit that to the girls. Why couldn’t everything just go according to our plans?

“What does that mean, mommy?” Sarah asked.

“That means that someone told the judge to drop this case and let Tariq go. And the judge said it was a very powerful person so he had to listen to him,” I confessed slowly.

“What? Why would they let him go?” Sarah gasped and I just shrugged.

“I don’t know, honey. I really don’t know,” I said and she held me in her tiny little arms.

“So what’s the plan? What are we doing?” Rachel asked, turning at me.

“The plan is that you should pack up your things, you leave in two days time,” I sighed.

“Pack? But what about..” she started but I cut her off.

“You don’t have to worry about that. We’ll get to the bottom of this but for now – please pack up. You have so many things you need to pack up. I know you’re dying to take all of the outfits home,” I smiled at her. She sighed.

“What if I don’t want to go?” she asked.

“Why wouldn’t you want to go?”

“For once, I like it here. I like the freedom. I like the people. I like the fresh air, the countryside, the forests, everything about this place amazes me. New York makes me feel small, neglected but here, I feel like a real person. Like me,” she sighed.

“You know that our parents would freak, right?”

“I know… But I thought.. Maybe if you tried to talk to them, they’d listen to you,” she smiled.

“That wouldn’t have to do anything with that Carlsford kid?”

“Gerard,” she sighed.

“Oh, he has a nice name,” I said.

“I know! He’s also lovely, attentive, nice… “

“And you want to throw away everything you have in America to be with some boy from Cordonia?” I asked and suddenly realized that I sounded just like my own mother. I shook my head.

“What do I have in America? A few friends, annoying parents and a brother who doesn’t talk to me! You’re here, Sarah’s here and yes, Gerard’s here. Why shouldn’t I be here, too?” she threw her arms in the air and I smiled at her. I knew her frustration. I felt the same at her age – it felt like everyone else could choose their own destinies but not me. I was left to my own devices.

“I’m sorry. I just don’t want you to throw away everything for one boy. I felt the same at your age,” I sighed.

“But look where it got you. You have a child and you’re about to marry and become a queen. Was your journey really that bad?” she crossed her arms.

“Listen, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for our parents. They helped me through the hardest time of my life and I will be eternally grateful for that. If it wasn’t for them, I’d probably live in a cheap ass apartment, trying just to get by with a child on my arms. I think you should talk to them first and if they actually agree, I’d love for you to live here. Liam would definitely agree,” I smiled at her.

“Do you think so?”

“I know so. But there’s one thing..”

“What?” Rachel asked.

“You still have to text me every day,” I smiled at her and she smiled back.

“Okay, okay. I’ll go. If Gerard is really such a good guy, he’ll wait for me, won’t he?” she smiled at me.

“Of course. There’s no rush.”

“No rush, right,” she nodded at me. I helped her pack away all of the things she wanted to take with her. The amount of stuff she accumulated throughout these months was ridiculous. Why did she have three stuffed toy bears and why did she absolutely have to take them with her? She didn’t answer me so I didn’t have a clue. When I looked at the time, me and Sarah rushed to pack up all of Rachel’s things and quickly got ready. It was the last little celebration we had before the coronation. And we all knew that it was a big deal.

We slowly walked down with Sarah for the little gathering. I was wearing a simple short purple dress and since I wasn’t wearing a gauze anymore, everyone could see my scars from that night but I didn’t mind. These were the people I trusted my life with and I wasn’t worried that they would gossip or gasp. And I was right, they all hugged me supportively. Liam made us all gather in a little circle and made a quick little toast. We all smiled but I felt like there was something off, especially since Hana was keeping to herself. I poked her from behind and she turned to me, surprised.

“Oh,” she smiled at me.

“Hana, what’s wrong?”

“Tariq… I can’t believe that he was let go and all of this just happened and it’s too much, you know? It’s way too much,” Hana was rambling.

“Hana!” I looked into her eyes. She sighed and pulled me out to the small balcony.

“What’s going on?”

“My parents called yesterday. We talked a lot and I told them that my relationship with the prince is friendly and that we are becoming friends..” she started.

“And let me guess, they weren’t happy about it?”

“No. They really weren’t. And the problem with this is … they told me that they want me home, so I could find a more advantageous match. They already told me about a Prince in Norway that would be “perfect” for me…” she sighed loudly.

“But Hana, aren’t you and Maxwell.. dating?”

“Yes, yes we are. But I couldn’t come out and quite tell them that. They want me to marry into royalty. They wouldn’t be happy with Maxwell. He’s not even the Duke, Bertrand is…” she sighed.

“Wait, so I don’t understand… Are you going home? To China? Seriously?” I gasped. Tears were starting to form in the corners of my eyes. Could this day get any worse?

“I think I have to. They told me that they’ll send a plane after the coronation is done and well… I don’t think they will change their mind. It has never happened before. And I can’t disobey them, I don’t want to humiliate them,” Hana slumped her shoulders, defeated.

“Does Maxwell know?”

“No, I couldn’t bear telling him…I’m really starting to fall for him and I don’t want to go without saying a word but I have no clue of how to bring it up. The fact is that this will hurt his pride and he’ll be crushed. I never want to crush his confidence,” she looked at me.

“Seriously? You have to tell him, Hana!”

“I know, I will. I promise. But not today. Let me enjoy today, okay?”

“Hana.. This sucks… I just..” I hugged her tightly and started bawling. I couldn’t help myself, everything started to fell too heavy for me tonight. Hana bawled right with me and we held each other like that for a while. It felt like I just arrived and got to know Hana so saying goodbye was hard. She was my friend when no one else was in court, when I felt alone, I found comfort in being around her, especially in the beginning. Everything started to come crashing down all at once and it devastated me.

“Ashley? A messenger just wanted to deliver this to you… Oh no, what’s wrong?” I turned around to see Liam’s worried face.

“We’re just.. frustrated at this whole situation,” I lied and wiped away a tear with my hand.

“I know, it’s been hard. Do you want to come inside, we’ll try to make you feel better?” Liam offered.

“In a minute. I want to see what the messenger wanted to deliver. It’s weird, I never get mail and now I get two pieces of mail delivered in one week?” I shook my hand and opened the letter. It didn’t have a return address or a hint of who this was.

“ ** _Ashley. You will never be Queen. Leave court after the coronation, or else_** ,” the note read. I gasped. Who would send that to me? Could it be the same person who released Tariq, I wonder?

I turned the note to Liam and his eyes widened.

“Both of you, come inside now!” he demanded and me and Hana obeyed. He looked angry. We knew it wasn’t with us but I still worried. This much anger couldn’t be healthy.

Liam whispered something into Rachel’s ears and she gladly nodded and took Sarah’s hand.

“Hey, do you want to watch “Lifehacks” with me?” she asked and Sarah nodded excitedly.

“This party was getting boooring!” she smiled at us.

“Man, someone really doesn’t want you to have a chance here,” Drake sighed when the girls were out of sight and Liam showed the note to everyone else. A picture fell out of the envelope and we all gasped at it. It was me, in a bra and Tariq’s back. You couldn’t see the knife that he was holding against me. The only thing that was clear in the picture was that it wasn’t Liam and you could see the room of the Applewood Manor. So they were threatening me with a picture that was taken the day that I was almost raped? I couldn’t believe it. Was that why Tariq was standing beside the window? To make sure that the photographer takes it at the right moment?

“I’m going to kill Tariq,” Liam said quietly.

“I can’t believe that they would use THAT against you…” Hana gasped.

“Well, I can. Now we clearly know that the person responsible for Tariq’s release is the same person who’s targetting Ashley with the note,” Olivia added.

“But who is it?” Maxwell stepped in and we were all in awe. I couldn’t for the life of me think of one person who’d like to do that for me, except for Tariq but he clearly wasn’t alone in this. He had someone helping him.

“Could it be his parents?” Hana suggested.

“But what would they gain with Ashley not becoming a Queen?”

“They wouldn’t. I’m confident that they are not the ones pulling out all the stops to stop Ashley from become a Queen, but they’re the ones helping Tariq escape Cordonia. I called their residence today, to get a statement from them,” Liam said.

“What? You actually called them?” Drake gasped.

“Yeah, I was sick and tired of the situation so I went straight to the culprits. When the housekeeper answered, she was in awe of the fact that she was speaking to a Crown Prince that will soon become this country’s king that she told me a lot of things she probably shouldn’t have. One of them was that Tariq’s parents made last-minute reservations on a private plane for three and were flying to the US,” Liam said quietly.

“The US?” I widened my eyes.

“Tariq’s parents have properties in Los Angeles and New York, but they could’ve bought a new property where Tariq could hide!” Hana gasped.

“Well, at least it narrowed it down. We now know more than we did this morning,” Drake crossed his arms.

“Tariq’s probably in hiding with his parents,” Olivia said.

“Probably,” I agreed.

“But I believe that lots of royals wouldn’t want to see the commoner on a throne,” Drake said through his teeth.

“Like who?”

“Duchess of Carlsford comes to mind,” I said quickly. Everyone looked shocked.

“I don’t think she’s involved,” Maxwell shook his head.

“Me neither,” I confessed.

“Then why mention her?”

“Well, she has been the most vocal noble and she had said that she wouldn’t be thrilled if I took the throne because I was a commoner. Surely, there are people who agree with her,” I answered and everyone nodded. It was just an idea.

“I have an actual idea but Liam already dismissed it,” Drake started and Liam shook his head.

“Drake stop! I already talked to him this afternoon, I’m fairly certain that it’s not him.”

“Are you talking about the current King, Drake?” Olivia crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him.

“Who else has the motivation for it? His first son abdicated because he fell in love with a commoner and here’s another one who has falled in love with a commoner. I just think he’s afraid that you’ll abdicate, too. You’re our Golden Boy after all,” Drake said the words with such disdain. It seemed that he didn’t like the King for personal reasons.

“To be fair, that is quite the motive,” Maxwell agreed.

“No, it’s not him. Can we drop it?” Liam sighed and ran his fingers through his hair again.

“Why are you so convinced?”

“Because he would never do that. He’s not an evil man. He’s a respectable and fair king, he has always been that way. He has never proven himself to be malicious,” Liam sighed in frustration.

“He also did sell Applewood Manor to Tariq, didn’t he?” Maxwell continued.

“Maxwell!” Liam shouted.

“We can’t rule anyone out!”

“Oh, if we can’t rule anyone out – why couldn’t it be Bertrand?”

“What did you just say?” Maxwell’s eyes widened from the shock. We all gasped.

“Liam!”

“If we can’t rule anyone out, why couldn’t it be him? Maybe that’s where he is right now – plotting his next plan against Ashley and me!” he got heated.

“You know very damn well where he is and why he’s there!” Maxwell shouted back.

“How convenient!”

“ ** _SHUT UP!_** ” Olivia shouted as loudly as she could. Both of them looked at her straight away.

“You’ve clearly had way too much to drink and you’ve been under too much stress. Now, let’s calm down and actually take a go at this rationally. We’re all adults, there’s no need for this,” she shook her head at both of them. Maxwell and Liam shook hands and apologised. It got out of hands rather quickly because everyone was under stress. But the thought never left me. Was it really King Constantine and Liam was just blinded by the respect he had for his father?

There was a quick knock at the door. A note for Olivia. And when she opened it, it said the same thing mine did, only there was an article about her parents – calling them traitors for trying to assasinate Liam’s mother.

“I thought only closest people to the Royal family knew this,” she stared at the article.

“Change of plans!” I shouted. I knew what we had to do but I really didn’t like it.


	20. The Coronation Ball

When I woke up the next morning, I felt woozy. I slept only a few hours. Our plan made sense to everyone and we all agreed to do it, but not before arguing about it for hours, for our own safety and for the safety of others but it still felt wrong. In mere 24 hours everything changed our world upside down so much that the only way out of this mess was in our own hands but it made the most sense. Sarah and Rachel were informed only on the smaller details of the plan but they weren’t happy with it at all. I knew this was going to be their reaction but there was nothing else I could do but just let them feel through it. I wasn’t happy, either.

Maxwell was already at our door, acting cheery as usual. The girls rolled their eyes when they saw him and he took them to see Anita. I finally got off my own bed and checked myself in the mirror. More precisely, I wanted to take a look at the scars I got from Tariq. The ones on my arms and chest. The red was fainting slowly. I knew I could cover them up with makeup easily. It wasn’t a hard job, but did I want to? I knew that people were going to stare. They didn’t do that at the Beaumont Bash because I was with Liam and a full on security team but now? I won’t be protected by Liam’s presence since he was going to be next to his father the whole time. The nobility all knew what happened. The royal family never released a statement to the public but the nobles saw a glimpse of Tariq being taken by the police car and Olivia, I was sure of that. They probably didn’t know the full story but they had a clue about what went down. Was I going to wear my scars proudly or hide them?

The seamstress had offered to sew a dress specially made for me so it’d cover everything I wanted to hide but I declined. I knew the dress I wanted ever since I first saw it on the rack, it was a purple ballgown, covered in small sparkly diamonds. It exposed my shoulders and chest but I didn’t mind, not anymore. I knew I had to stop hiding and own up to what happened. Liam promised that once Tariq would be in Cordonian custody, that he will absolutely make a statement and that he will rot in that jail cell for once and for all. I trusted him on this.

When I finally was called to Anita’s, I was still in my pj’s, so I put on my pink robe and ran to her. She was probably busy today and didn’t need me to make everything difficult for her. When I finally arrived, she had finished on Sarah’s hair.

“Mommy, look, pretty braids!” she said, twirling around. I smiled. At least she wasn’t so grumpy anymore.

“That’s great sweetheart,” I smiled at her and Anita invited me to sit on the chair.

“So what hairstyle did we had in mind today, huh? Some big locks? Something super stylish for the big day?” Anita sounded excited.

“Maybe something simple, like straightening it? I haven’t straightened my hair in forever,” I said.

“Because that’s easy, I want to make something special for you!”

“I’d prefer it straightened, Anita, thanks,” I smiled weakly at her. She sighed.

“You know what? Okay, but only if you let me put on an accessory for you,” she finally answered.

“Anita, I don’t…”

“Let me do this for you! And honey, please let me make the red in your hair pop again!” she smiled and I finally agreed since I did still want to look pretty amazing at the coronation. While she dyed my hair red, we were chit-chatting but she wasn’t gossiping like usual and I knew it was because I was being moody. But she still kept the conversation going and talked to me anyway. We both knew that something was going on and I was thankful that she knew when not to pry. When she was finished, she spun me around her chair and brought me a big purple flower.

“How did you know?” I widened my eyes. The flower would match my dress perfectly, especially since it had tiny little diamonds inside.

“I have friends around the palace, dear,” she smiled at me and I nodded. Of course, she did. The seamstress probably told her about the dress. I hugged her tightly.

“I hope you get want you want, dear,” she winked at me and I felt like she knew more than she was leading on.

“I hope so, too.”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Maxwell brought the dress to my room and when I put it on, I couldn’t help but smile when I checked myself out in the mirror. It was absolutely perfect, fit like a glove and made me feel like I was floating on air. The scars weren’t even that visible from afar which made me feel a whole lot better. And the flower in my hair complimented the dress perfectly, it seemed like they were made for each other. I felt like a real princess at this very moment. And I didn’t want to face reality yet.

“So are you ready?” Maxwell asked. I shook my head.

“I guess,” I sighed. I had already done my makeup, my hair was ready, my dress was gorgeous and my lilac shoes were already on me. There was nothing else to do but to walk to the limo.

Bertrand smiled at me when he saw me.

“You look fantastic,” he said proudly.

“Thank you,” I smiled shyly. He was never one for compliments. He also had no clue about what’s going on tonight. To be honest, I was a little jealous of that. I wish I didn’t, either.

I felt someone poking at my shoulder so I turned around to see Hana. She was wearing a flower in her hair, too. A silver one, no diamonds but it didn’t need any since it was shining all on it’s own. Hana was wearing a long silver gown that accentuated her slim figure, she looked amazing.

“Hey!” I smiled at her.

“Hey, I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she smiled. I shook my head.

“Of course not!”

“I wanted to invite you and the girls to arrive at the coronation on my parent’s horse carriage,” she smiled excitedly.

“You’re kidding! You’re getting to ride in a carriage?” I gasped.

“Yes. My parents last display of wealth, they wanted it to be big,” she sighed.

“Of course we’ll come ride with you.. that is, if that’s okay with you?” I turned to Beaumont brothers and both of them nodded. Rachel was already coming out of the palace with Sarah in hand. Rachel had her hair blown out and she wore a matching purple dress to mine, but it wasn’t a ballgown.

“I’m going to miss this,” Rachel smiled and looked at me. I nodded and offered the girls a ride on a horse carriage, both of them agreed on the spot.

“Can we actually ride the horse instead?” Sarah asked and everyone shook their heads.

“Maybe next time, ” I whispered into her ear.

We stood there, waiting for a while until we finally heard a clicking of the horse’s hooves. And then the carriage came into sight. It was beautiful, the carriage looked like it was made of gold and the horse looked magnificent.

“Have fun!” Maxwell said, hopping into his limo.

“We’ll see you at the Coronation Ball,” Bertrand nodded and followed him.

When we finally got into the carriage and started slowing going through the well-lit streets of Cordonia, I was glad that the ballroom wasn’t very far because this was getting boring very quickly. Sarah and Rachel chatted away while me and Hana were in deep thought. She smiled at me from time to time and I did at her. It felt a little awkward but how could it not be?

When the ballroom came into view, it was swarming with press, pictures flashing and everyone screaming their questions at the nobles. With one eye, I saw Kiara and Penelope enter the ballroom while the press weren’t allowed in yet, so they swarmed everyone they could get their hands on. When they finally saw us, everyone chanted our names and screamed their questions as loudly as they could at us. We just smiled politely at them. Liam’s bodyguards helped us off the carriage and walked us through the red carpet.

“These two ladies aren’t suitors, I don’t think they’re supposed to come with you on the red carpet, m’lady,” a bodyguard addressed me.

“They’re coming with me, ” I looked at him defiantly and he nodded. I took both of their hands and slowly walked through the red carpet, camera’s flashing in our faces.

“This just in, Lady Ashley arrived in Lady Hana’s carriage and walks the red carpet with her sister and daughter,” I heard a reporter say. Everyone wanted a story but I wasn’t going to give them any, since they’re going to have plenty of writing to do after tonight’s events.

When the doors closed behind us, I sighed in relief. Bertrand walked up to us.

“What took you so long?”

“Blame the horse, not me,” I snapped at him and then apologized. He nodded. Hana finally entered through the door and also sighed.

“It’s terrible out there, ” she shook her head.

“Now, that all of the suitors have arrived, you will be greeting the King and the Queen shortly,” Bertrand said and as if on cue, the royal couple walked in, from another room and waved.

Madeleine walked up to them first, then it was Olivia, then Kiara, Penelope and suddenly, it was my turn. I walked bravely up to them.

“Good evening, Your Majesties,” I smiled politely and they returned my smile.

“Good evening, lady Ashley!” King Constantine replied politely.

“Thank you for inviting me tonight, it’s been a pleasure in court!”

“Of course. Even though you aren’t from noble blood, you still deserve a chance of trying, especially since you have a powerful house sponsoring you!” she nodded and pointed at Bertrand who was walking around nervously.

“Yes, to gain the support of the Duke is no small feat. You bring something very interesting to the Court and I hope to see you after this aswell,” the King nodded and I smiled at both of them. I moved along so that Hana could finally get a chance to speak to them, too.

Bertrand waved me over.

“Do you remember what comes next? ” he asked.

“I think so. Is it the dinner with the suitors?”

“Yes and then?”

“Then we each get about ten minutes with the prince, after that the ballroom’s door gets opened, we mingle, dance, have fun, then the actually ceremony begins…” I sighed.

“Yes, now I think you should go, follow Hana,” he excitedly pushed me towards her and I walked over to her.

“Are you okay?” Hana asked, looking into my eyes.

“I don’t know, honestly. I feel so…”

“Strange? Me too. I feel like this isn’t the way any of us pictured this happening,” Hana confessed and I was so glad she did. Everyone else seemed perfect and to know that this didn’t seem right with her too, calmed me down.

“You know that we’re going to fight this,” she whispered.

“I know that. And I’m sorry I’ve been this way. I know we need to do this, it just saddens me,” I sighed.

“I’m sorry. It hasn’t been easy for me too, I don’t have a clue how to act around anyone today, ” Hana sighed.

“I know! I don’t know how to speak to anyone today!”

“Ladies, are you coming or what?” Olivia asked, looking back at us. They were all following a server upstairs, so we joined in. Me and Hana linked hands. I realized that I wasn’t the only one who felt weird and was worried. It helped to know that Hana was in the same position because she always looked ready for anything that came her way so I didn’t even think how hard this must be for her, too.

The server opened the door and we were seated in a lavish dining room. When the server left, there was an awkward silence upon us. There were six of us and none of us felt comfortable talking. At least, I certainly didn’t.

“I know that I’m not going to get picked but I’m still so nervous,” Penelope finally broke the silence. We all stared at her in agreement. She wouldn’t be picked.

“You don’t know that,” Kiara smiled encouragingly at her.

“You’re as foolish as she is, if you believe that,” Madeleine giggled. We all looked at her, in shock. Did she really find this funny?

“You don’t know anything, Madeleine,” I looked her straight in the eyes. I saw a smirk of approval from Olivia and suddenly felt a lot braver than I was.

“I suppose you’re still hoping that the Prince chooses you?” Madeleine looked straight back at me, it felt intense. She really knew how to make a person uncomfortable.

“I hope he does,” Kiara answered so defiantly that even Madeleine gasped.

“I hope so, too. She’s way nicer than you will ever be. She wasn’t born here but she’s shown much more consideration for the people around her than you do,” Penelope backed her up and I smiled. The conversation stopped at that, no one wanted to add anything anymore and I was glad, I didn’t want anymore fighting or drama, I had enough for a lifetime.

When the dinner was over, we were asked to speak to Liam one by one. Kiara was first, then Penelope, Olivia and when Hana was called, she looked at me apologetically, leaving me with Madeleine. She kept throwing icy stares at me and I inhaled loudly. I knew she wasn’t as bad as she wanted to seem.

“Good luck, you’ll need it,” she finally said when the server asked for her to come with him.

I was alone for ten minutes but that was good, it gave me time to answer my brother’s texts. We were texting back and fourth for a while and I did promise him to grab a coffee when I’m in New York next time.

“Lady Ashley?” I heard my name being called by the nice server so I quickly stood up and walked with him to another room. When he opened the door and I saw Liam, I couldn’t hide my happiness.

“Finally!” he said when the door closed shut. I walked up to him and he pulled me in for a passionate kiss. I felt his arms all over me and we didn’t even stop to take a breath. We kissed like there was no tomorrow, nothing, just us and the world was only in this room.

“You look beautiful,” he finally whispered in my ear when we broke the kiss. He took a big breath and I smiled.

“You look dashing, like a real prince Charming,” I kissed him softly on the lips. He didn’t let me go and kept kissing me, pulling my lower lip. I stopped the kiss.

“I just wanted to talk,” I smiled at him and he nodded, understanding.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s hard, you know… The whole plan thing. I was supposed to feel happy today. You’re going to a king. A great king. And and…” I looked down, not able to stop the tears that were forming in my eyes.

“Hey, hey. Look at me,” he lifted up my chin so that I looked him in the eyes.

“We can do everything differently. You know we can, we can screw the plan and do whatever you’re comfortable with,” he said so softly. I knew in my heart that he would do whatever it takes to make me happy and that made realize that to get what I wanted, we had to go through with it. It had to be done.

“We’re going through with the plan. The sooner we do, the sooner we find the culprit. I’ll be okay,” I answered with a smile.

“Are you sure?” he looked at me, unsure.

“I am. Honestly, I am, you just doubting the plan made me realize how much we need to stick to it,” I pressed a kiss to his lips. He put his arms around me and we heard a knock at the door.

“Your ten minutes are up, Your Majesty!” the servant said.

“That was fast,” I gasped.

“With you, time flies by so fast. I love you,” he said as I was getting ready to step outside.

“I love you too,” I whispered and stepped outside the door to follow the servant who brought me to the ballroom.

Sarah and Rachel were already dancing with each other, with Maxwell cheering them up. I stood next to Bertrand who looked pleased and was talking to a blonde good-looking man in a royal suit. Bertrand turned to me and smiled.

“Lady Ashley! How nice of you to join us. Have you ever met…”

“Prince Leo, Liam’s brother? Why, I haven’t,” I smiled at him and he looked surprised that I knew who he was.

“Bertrand’s royal training,” I explained and he nodded.

“Ah, yes. We’ve all been through that rigorous training with him. So Lady Ashley, have you been having a hard time in court?” he smiled at me.

“Do you follow the tabloids?” I smiled back.

“Yes, I do. I love seeing my brother in drama I would’ve been in,” he chuckled.

“Well, it’s been pretty crazy. But what has the Former Crown Prince of Cordonia up to?” I stared back at him. He seemed like a very relaxed person so he must’ve been having a good time.

“I got married to the love of my life and we’re having a child together. Nothing too crazy,” he smirked.

“Wow! Congratulations!”

“Congrats brother!” I heard Liam’s voice behind me. Both brothers hugged and bumped fists. I couldn’t stop chuckling at that, it seemed so childish but still, it was a cute gesture.

“So where is your lovely wife?” Liam asked when a young girl with dark brown hair appeared next to Leo. She was wearing a long, yellow sundress and her stomach was popping out but it suited her. She wasn’t wearing a lot of makeup but still she looked beautiful, I couldn’t stop but envy her. When I was pregnant with Sarah, I had pimples everywhere and I couldn’t make my face look good at all but she was a totally different sight.

“Hi! I’m Katie,” she introduced herself to me and I shook her hand. Liam hugged her gently and she allowed him to rub her belly a little.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were having a baby?” Liam gasped.

“I did, in my e-mail but you never replied,” Leo shook his head and Liam looked embarrassed and defeated.

“I’m so sorry, I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had any time to check my own personal e-mail for about.. six months?” he sighed.

“That’s okay, I know how it is. I really do, that’s why I escaped this life. But I’d like you visit more once the little one is out,” he pointed at Katie’s belly.

“Of course, I will! I would love to visit!” he smiled.

“And we’d love some visitors!” Katie smiled.

“What do you mean? We always have visitors!” Leo gasped.

“Yes, but my siblings don’t count anymore, they come over all the time,” Katie chuckled. Both of them looked so sweet together. I looked at Liam, who was watching them. I knew he wanted this. A family, a nice relationship, something easy but he was never destined for an easy life, was he?

“From all the articles I’ve read about you, I never thought you’d be a family man,” I smiled at Leo.

“Me neither. But when I found her, everything changed. I’ve partied enough,” he smiled back and the smile really seemed genuine. Bertrand coughed and I realized that we’ve been ignoring him the whole time.

“Yes, Bertrand?” I turned to him and he pointed at Madeleine who was slowly walking up to us, with a glass of champagne in her hand. _Oh boy,_ I thought to myself. She looked at us all once over and hid her surprise well when she saw Katie’s bump.

“Congratulations are in order!” she said loudly and smiled at them. The smile was so fake and everyone could see through it. Madeleine awkwardly touched her hair.

“Thank you, Madeleine,” Katie smiled at her nicely.

“So is it going to be a boy or a girl?” Madeleine asked.

“A boy,” Katie answered quickly.

“I’d like to get your address so that I could send something over to you from Fydelia,” she gritted through her teeth but Katie shook her head.

“Oh, it’s not necessary, we already have everything we need,” she smiled nicely back at a fuming Madeleine.

“Very well. Nice to see you _again_ ,” she said and walked away very quickly. I had no reason to but somehow I felt very bad for her. This probably wasn’t easy – seeing your ex married and with a child with someone else.

“I’m so happy I abdicated,” Leo chuckled when Madeleine was too far away to hear us.

“Leo!” Katie playfully punched him with her elbow.

“What?”

“That wasn’t very nice!”

“She wasn’t very nice either!” he was frustrated. Me and Bertrand stepped away for a bit.

“Lady Ashley?”

“Yes?”

“Is everything alright?”

“No, but it will be,” I left Bertrand, all confused and walked over to Maxwell, who was dancing with the girls. I joined in their little dance for a while, until the King stepped up to the podium.

“Show time!” Maxwell mouthed and I nodded. It was, indeed.

All of the suitors were asked to line up below the podium, so I took Hana’s and Olivia’s hands and we walked over, holding each other’s hands, feeling safer than I did before.

When I looked back, I saw Drake. _Drake was here?_ And he was in a tux. That explained why I didn’t see or hear him at all, he blended in with the crowd in his grey tuxedo. He nodded at me, when he saw me staring. I nodded back. Of course, he wouldn’t miss his best friend’s coronation.

“The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived. It has been an honor to serve Cordonia these last few decades. It has been an enlighting experience. I’m very proud of our country and it’s people. It’s been a pleasure being your King. And now I pass on the crown to my son, Liam, knowing full well that he will make the right choices for Cordonia, as I did, I couldn’t ask for a better successor!” as he said the words, something felt off. Maybe, it was the way he said that Liam will make the right choices, but I listened intently and I knew Olivia did, too. We looked at each other and she nodded, as if confirming my suspicions that something was off.

“Father…” Liam shook his head.

“It’s true! I love your brother but it feels like you’ve known that you’re going to be a king since birth. You were just, wise beyond your years and always reliable. Whenever I’ve needed your support, you’ve come through, just like a King would. Liam, you are the King that Cordonia needs right now. Today, I pass on the royal signet ring to you. Cordonia is yours, son,” he bowed to Liam. Liam stepped up to the podium.

“I wanted to thank every single one of you for being here with me tonight. This is an incredible honor to lead you through these times. I hope I will do my family and Cordonia proud,” he bowed to his father and the Queen. Both of them hugged Liam very tightly.

“And now King Liam will choose his bride. I’m proud of every suitor here, they all have proven that they know what it takes what to be a queen and anyone of them would make a wonderful queen,” Queen Regina said and smiled at the crowd.

“Have you chosen, King Liam?” his father turned to him and Liam nodded, even though he looked unsure. Very unsure. I had a similar feeling. But he stepped up to the podium proudly and took a look at me.

“Go with the plan,” I mouthed at him and he nodded.

“I choose… Lady Hana,” he said and smiled, turning his gaze at Hana. _He followed the plan…_ I told him to, but I still felt crushed. Hana squeezed my hand tightly, put on her fake smile and walked up to the podium, smiling at everyone in her way.

“I am deeply honored to accept,” Hana smiled at the public. Everyone clapped and kept looking at me. Everyone thought he was going to choose me. And he was, until last night, when Olivia was targetted. I couldn’t take this anymore, so slowly but surely we all came up with a plan to make everyone safe and so Hana could stay. Her parents would be over the moon when they found out that the Prince had chosen her, so she would get to stay and plan her wedding with Liam. She was also not targetted by the culprit since she never recieved any note asking her to leave, so she was probably deemed an appropriate suitor. We decided that this way was safer for everyone, including me and Olivia, even though it broke my heart. And Maxwell’s. Maxwell rejected the idea over and over again until Hana told him the truth – that she’d have to leave otherwise.When he realized the serious situation we were facing, he finally gave in. We all knew this was going to be hard. The engagement was going to be cancelled once we got to the bottom of it all. We had to figure it all out during the engagement tour. Hana kissed Liam on the cheek and they actually looked so good together. They looked like a real good-looking couple. I shook my head to stop my insecurities from getting the best of me, once again.

“The former king looks surprised,” Olivia whispered at me.

“Yeah, and look at Madeleine, she looks like a mess,” I pointed at Madeleine who looked furious. I didn’t even want to look at Bertrand’s disappointed face so I took the girls and ran to the limo as fast as I could. Since the engagement tour was starting in two weeks and my custody trial was in the middle of that, I decided that I had to go back to New York to face the demons I avoided there. It was time. Liam arranged everything and I was so thankful for him having the connections to do so.

Two weeks seemed a lot but I knew they’d go by quickly enough because I was going to be busy. And this way Rachel didn’t have to fly back alone.

Maxwell and Olivia rushed with us back to the palace and helped us carry our suitcases back to the limo. Liam’s limo pulled up next to ours and he stepped out of it, with Hana and Drake.

“We wanted to say goodbye,” Liam said and I nodded. Everyone rode to the airport in Liam’s limo but they let me and Liam have some privacy and we got to ride the Beaumont limo by ourselves. He held me in his arms when we were inside.

“Two weeks without you are going to be hell,” he whispered in my ear.

“I know. And facing Paul after this will suck even more,” I looked at him sadly.

“I can fly with you, if you want. I’m the King now, I can do a lot of things I couldn’t before,” he flashed a smile at me.

“No, no. I can handle it, you’re okay. Just don’t have too much fun without me?” I smiled at him and melted into his hug. He pressed tiny little kisses all over my face.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Hey, did you see Drake in a tux?” I smiled.

“Yeah, that’s a first. But I think we all know he was trying to impress someone,” Liam smiled back.

“Olivia?”

“Of course, and that’s why she wore the low-cut dress, so that he’d…”

“Gawk at her?” I finished his sentence and Liam nodded.

We had arrived at the airport but I wasn’t ready to say goodbye yet. I kissed Liam passionately on the lips before stepping outside of the limo. He sat there with a silly grin on his face. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to kiss him goodbye in public anymore because the press will be watching, all the time so we will have to steal moments here and there. Nothing new, but this time we’ll have to be sneakier than ever before because the press will be lurking for stories.

When I hugged everyone goodbye, it shattered my heart. They have been a huge part of my daily life for months now and two weeks without them seemed like torture.

“I’ll create a group chat so we can all text each other all the time,” Maxwell smiled and we all agreed. I had to have my dose of Cordonia somehow. I turned for my final goodbye and the only thing that warmed my heart, was knowing that it wasn’t the end. This was a new beginning, for all of us.

“Hello New York!” I said as me, Sarah and Rachel boarded the plane with our suitcases.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this little twist. I've always thought that it should've been Hana not Madeleine chosen at the end of book 1. what are your thoughts?  
> I'm finally finished with book 1, that's a bit of relief. Here's to 2 more books! :) I'm going to keep them all here. Thank you for reading and see you in Book 2, where we not only uncover more secrets but also dive into some!


	21. New York Nostalgia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Welcome to book 2! This chapter is all about Ashley in New York, dealing with herself and her issues. I do hope you enjoy it and tell me what you think about it.

When we landed in New York, we were greeted by my parents who were extremely happy that we were finally home. They had no clue about anything that was going on, so they hugged me extra hard and since I had no intention of telling them the real story, I nodded at a lot of what they said. When I told them that I absolutely HAD to go back for the engagement tour with Sarah, they looked at me like I was crazy. To them it probably was.

“What do you mean – you have to go back? Darling, you’re home, you don’t have to do that,” my mom shook her head.

“Mom, she HAS to. It’s the custom in Cordonia. She’d look disrespectful if she didn’t,” Rachel agreed. It meant a lot to me that she was helping because I knew how much she wanted to go back with us.

“Well, the press sure wasn’t respectful when they wrote about her,” my dad chimed in. I sighed. Sarah was already asleep in our room, tired of everything. Me and my sister sat with my parents in the kitchen, trying to discuss the future. They absolutely hated the idea of me going back. And I did understand why. But they didn’t know that my life was now there.

“Mom, I’m going. That’s it, no more questions,” I looked straight into her eyes. She stared right back.

“Do you really like that prince THAT much?” my mom asked and I widened my eyes. Of course, I did! I nodded and she hugged me.

“I’m sorry he decided to marry your friend,” she said. I nodded. Even if the engagement wasn’t real, it still wasn’t the most pleasant topic for me. And I was so insecure in myself that I had a lot of _what if’s flo_ ating around. What if they actually realized that they’re perfect for each other?

When I finally climbed into bed next to Sarah, I couldn’t sleep at all. So I texted Liam. Maxwell. Hana. Drake. Olivia even, and I was so sure she’d be awake. I got no responses. I kept staring at my phone until I decided to call my brother.

“Ash, is everything okay?” he asked in a worried voice.

“Want to go for a walk?” I asked him suddenly. When we were little, we used to go for walks around town at night all the time. I loved it because the streets were empty and we just chatted away about our own nonsense. It was such a carefree time in our lives.

“At 2 AM?”

“Sorry, I knew it was a stupid idea,” I sighed.

“No, no. I’m totally in. Just let me pick you up,” he said quickly.

“I said for a walk, not for a drive!”

“We will, but I have to get to you first,” it sounded like he smiled. We agreed to meet in about fifteen minutes, in the playground where I lost my first tooth. I quickly changed from my pj’s to a simple black skaterdress, a leather jacket and my black sneakers. I tried to close the door as quietly as I could and started running towards the playground. It felt so freeing. Just running and knowing that I wasn’t in court. No more rules, no more judging, no more impressing the nobles and the press. I did miss Cordonia but this felt like a little throwback to my old life. I was going to see my brother. My big brother.

When I saw a dark car drive up to the playground, I was sitting on the bench next to the playground. I looked at the figure walking towards me. He was also wearing a black leather jacket. I looked at his face and noticed that the bags under his eyes were bigger than I’ve ever seen them. His skin pale, his hair messy. He looked tired. And much much older than the last time I saw him. I had to take a moment to take this in – my big brother was finally here. To see me. Not my mom, my daughter or anyone else. He came here to actually see me. I jumped up to greet him and hugged him hard. He laughed, he still had his hearty laugh.

“I missed you, you know,” I said, kicking a rock and suddenly feeling very awkward in his presence.

“I missed you too,” he smiled. We didn’t talk for a bit, just walked around the playground aimlessly until he finally broke the silence.

“I’m sorry I’ve been such a dick,” he looked into my eyes.

“But what happened? Did I do something?” I asked.

“No, it wasn’t you. It was never about you… and it sucks that you blamed yourself. It was about Shannon.. She..” he started and I looked at him, trying to be as supportive as I could be at this moment.

“She was pregnant. We’ve just moved in and we wanted to keep it a secret for a while until the 12 week mark but the baby’s heart stopped at about week 10 and she was devastated. We really hoped that Sarah could have a cousin to play with it,” he sighed. I looked at Tom. His eyes were filled with tears and he was trembling. _Oh no…_ I felt like I was the shittiest sister ever. He suffered such a loss but I made it about my own feelings. Of course, he didn’t want to come over with his girlfriend, when I had a baby of my own in the house – it’d remind them of their own loss. I instinctively hugged him. I didn’t know what to say that would make this feel any better so I didn’t. I held him and felt tears swell up in my own eyes. That would’ve been wonderful if they did have a child… Sarah would have had a little baby cousin to play with and my brother would probably be the happiest man alive. I’d have a little niece or nephew to spoil…

“You’re the second person I’ve told this to,” he sighed.

“I’m glad you did. That explains a lot.” And after I said that, he also explained everything that happened after that. That Shannon was grieving and she didn’t like me bombarding him with questions so she made him shut me out. That he respected her grief too much. When they were over grieving, they tried to concieve again and again, and a specialist told Shannon that she wouldn’t be able to concieve a child naturally anymore. After that she didn’t want to even come visit us, so Tom had to come visit us alone because he did want to see Sarah grow up but Shannon said that it would hurt her too much.

“So what changed? Why did you call me that morning?” I asked, looking at him.

“When mom told me about the competition, I thought you were crazy, honestly. Now, I’m not so sure,” he chuckled.

“But then I started following your journey through the press and livestreams. You were good. So good, I was very proud of you. I followed every scandal, me and mom read every news article written about you,” Tom admitted.

“You and mom are such gossips,” I chuckled.

“When I read that someone was arrested in the palace and that the ambulance and police were called, I was beside myself worrying what might’ve happened. I called mom but she didn’t pick up right away, so I worried even more. I realized that I could’ve lost not only you but Rachel and Sarah and I felt shitty. Shitty for not being there for you sooner and shitty for not reaching out when I should have,” he said nervously. I hugged him.

“Thanks. “

“For what?”

“For telling me everything. I didn’t know. And I thought that you just didn’t want me in your life anymore and that felt… upsetting, to be honest,” I let out a sigh I had been holding in.

“I always wanted you in my life but I’m pretty private as you’ve noticed,” he chuckled. I nodded in agreement. He was never an open book.

“I broke up with Shannon last week,” he suddenly interrupted the silent moment.

“What happened?”

“I just realized how much she held me back, especially from my family,” he smiled at me.

“So now you’ll make time for us?”

“I promise, I will,” he smiled and I smiled back. I suddenly felt a lot lighter – my brother was back. We talked a lot – about what happened after Sarah was born, how crazy the palace life was and how Rachel had been doing. He felt bad for not reaching out to her, too, so we made plans to change that once and for all.

We drove around for a bit,we didn’t want to say goodbye yet. It was too early for us. It felt like I had gotten a part of me back. A part of me that was lost. A part of me that was carefree. We didn’t have a care in the world right now – just me and him sharing the stories of our past. It felt nice to reconnect with my brother. My big brother. It still felt weird to acknowledge that I had gotten my brother back.

When we finally got to my mom’s house, the sun was starting to rise. Me and Tom tried to slip in quietly but it felt like the whole house was shaking. He was too tired to go home so he crashed on the couch while I ran upstairs to sleep with Sarah in our old bed. I was happy. _Everything happens for a reason_ , I whispered to myself while falling asleep.

The next week went by pretty fast. I spent a lot of time bonding with my family, going on family picnics, to the zoo, and pretty much enjoying the last warm days before autumn hit. I didn’t know when I’d be back the next time. I still felt uneasy knowing that Paul was out there somewhere and was a bit paranoid of running into him but Liam still made sure that my parents had bodyguards around them everywhere they went so that Paul couldn’t threaten anyone else, which was comforting. The day before I had to go to my court hearing with the judge, I sat down with Sarah. It was time she knew. I wasn’t ready for this conversation but I knew I wouldn’t ever be ready. I wasn’t ready to forgive him yet.

“Let’s have a serious talk, okay?” I said nervously.

“Did I do something wrong?” Sarah widened her little eyes. I shook my head.

“No, of course not. But it’s still serious. I know that we’ve never talked about your dad and you’ve never even asked me about him,” I inhaled loudly. Sarah looked deep in thought. She didn’t answer right away.

“I did ask, but I asked grandma and grandpa,” she looked at me.

“And?”

“And they told me that he didn’t want us. So I don’t want him, too,” she sighed and looked into my eyes. I couldn’t understand how could anyone not want her. I instinctively went in for a hug and when she wrapped her tiny arms around me, my heart broke for her. She was only five years old, had never met the man and already had negative feelings towards him. He broke her heart before anyone else could do it for her.

“Well, actually, your dad is suing me,” I started.

“What? Why?” she looked startled.

“He wants custody of you and to get to know you. Would you be interested in that?” I asked softly.

“No way,” she said quietly.

“I think he’d like a chance to explain himself,” I started defending him a little. I wasn’t doing it for him, though. I was doing it for her. She didn’t deserve negativity from such a young age. Especially since she would be meeting him tomorrow for the first time. Sarah also had to testify and put her side out there before the judge would be making her final decision. This would normally take a few months but luckily, Liam arranged everything to be done in one day. I was so thankful that we had him in our life and that he was ready to help us anyway he could.

“I’d be okay with that, you know,” I smiled at her.

“With what?”

“With you meeting your father and getting to know him, ” I encouraged her.

“What if I don’t want to?”

“That’s okay, too. But tomorrow, we all have to go down to the courthouse to testify against him. Are you okay with that?”

“Yes, mommy. Goodnight,” she pretended to yawn, I tucked her into bed, read her a book and pressed a kiss to her forehead when she had finally fallen asleep.

“Sleep tight, princess,” I whispered into her ear. There was something very peaceful about sleeping children. They’re so active during the day that when they finally fall asleep, it feels liberating. Relaxing. And they’re so darn cute when they sleep. I watched for a while until I heard many _ding!_ sounds on my phone. It was the group chat.

Maxwell: “Good luck tomorrow!”

Olivia: “She doesn’t need luck, the judge will see what a knucklehead Paul is.”

Hana: “A little luck doesn’t hurt anyone, Olivia!”

Olivia: “Luck is for losers. Ashley’s no loser!”

Drake: “Fabiano, you can do this!”

Liam: “Charm them like you charmed Cordonia.”

Maxwell: “You can do this!!!!!!!!!!”

I smiled. They were all so silly and I missed them. I loved my time in New York but Cordonia really had grown on me. I missed all the forests, the friendly people and lavender fields. New York was so different but it didn’t feel like home anymore. It felt nostalgic to be here but it wasn’t home. I knew I couldn’t go back to my old life – not now, not ever. I didn’t event want to. And it wasn’t because of the lavish lifestyle, it was because I couldn’t imagine my life without my friends anymore because they felt more than just friends. They were my family already. We all had grown so close, especially since we devised the plan. I wasn’t going to leave them and I knew that they weren’t going to leave me. That felt good – knowing that people had my back no matter what.

When I woke up in the morning, I didn’t feel so good. I felt nervous and even though I knew it couldn’t go badly either way, knowing that I would have to see Paul did soil my mood. Quite a lot, actually. When I looked outside the window, it was bleak and rainy. _Appropriate for today_ , I thought. I quickly put my hair up on a high ponytail, chose a white ruffly blouse, black jeans, a black jacket, sunglasses and looked at myself in the mirror. I didn’t look half as bad as I thought I would. I sent the selfie of me to the group chat and they all were supportive, of course.

“You got this, you’ve been through worse,” I told myself while looking in the mirror. I walked downstairs and my mom was already braiding Sarah’s hair.

“Do I have to go?” she groaned at me when she saw me.

“Yes, honey. Your father wants to see you for the first time,” I smiled at her and heard her sigh. I was too nervous for breakfast so I only had a coffee while everyone else munched on my mom’s pancakes. They looked delicious but I felt nauseated already so I just kept drinking my coffee. When we were done, we all ran to the car. Rachel called shotgun so me, Sarah and my dad sat in the back while my mom drove us to the courthouse.

“Nervous?” my dad asked. He looked nervous, too. He was in his suit jacket and he looked pretty fine from the outside but I could tell that this whole situation made him nervous, too.

“You don’t even want to know,” I sighed. He patted my head. I looked out the window and realized that we were close. I felt my heart race faster and faster. We drove past the courthouse so my mom could find a good parking space. There was a bunch of press there already. In normal circumstances there wouldn’t be, but since they all knew as the commoner who tried to be royal, they all tried to get interviews. My family was flooded with calls from the press – none of them answered. Some people claiming we were close did manage to get their views out there but no one commented on them. I didn’t want to give the American press anything, especially since we all knew how they liked to twist and turn things around. I promised myself that I wouldn’t make a spectacle out of this trial even though there were so many things I could have said. And wanted to.

My mom finally found a nice parking spot next to a news stand. I looked at some of the headlines that were made about me. “Ashley Fabiano played by Liam, returns to the US in shame”, “King Liam played us like a fiddle until the very end, Ashley heartbroken, a close source says”, “Liam’s betrayal: He parades Cordonia with his new fiancee while Ashley hides in shame in the US” and these were the mild ones. I rolled my eyes at them and Rachel widened her eyes when she saw them.

“I wish I could’ve told them the truth,” she whispered to me and I nodded. But at least it worked – if the press was writing this heavily about the betrayal, then the culprit most likely had no clue that we were onto him. I still suspected Liam’s father but I didn’t want to admit it loudly to our friends like Maxwell did because I knew now what Liam’s reaction would be. But I knew we had to keep an eye on him. I was ready to get back to the palace to figure this out but I still had to deal with today. I took Sarah’s hand and we quickly walked through the storm of paparazzi and people with cameras, filming us, asking us questions.

“Geez, the press is way nicer in Cordonia,” Rachel said when we finally were in the building. I agreed. In Cordonia they kept a safe distance and weren’t stepping on your toes. Yes, they were screaming and trying to get answers but here, some of them actually tried to get into my way so I’d pay attention to them. _Forget about them, focus on yourself_ , I told myself and we walked further into the building to look for my lawyer. When Liam hired her, he calmed me down by telling me that she was a pro at these cases and that I wouldn’t have anything to worry about with her on my side. I noticed a woman with very long black hair walking towards us quickly, almost like she was running. She was wearing a white classic shirt, black pencil skirt and black stilettos. I realized that she was my lawyer. She looked more like a model than a lawyer and I started to feel a bit insecure in the outfit I was wearing. She smiled at me and shook my hand.

“Hi, I’m Alyssa and I’ll be your lawyer today. Don’t be so nervous, I’ll take good care of you!” _Was it that obvious that I was nervous?_

“Thank you Alyssa. I’m Ashley and this is..”

“Sarah! Oh, I know. Ever since Liam convinced me to take on this case, I’ve been keeping tabs on you. I also got all of your statements last week and I think that this should be an open and shut case,” Alyssa smiled at us. She lead us to a hallway where we finally saw Paul. He looked like he didn’t sleep all night, his hair was a mess and he wasn’t even in a suit. He wore his biker jacket. _Of course he did._ He stood next to a woman in a very short beige dress with a pixie blond haircut. She looked nervous, too. Was this the woman he was going to marry?

Paul kept pacing back and forth, not noticing us for a minute. He kept shouting at a man with glasses, who kept nodding at him. This wasn’t the reunion I was expecting. When he finally did notice us, he widened his eyes and walked over. Sarah hid behind me when she noticed him approaching with the woman.

“Is this her?” he asked nervously.

“No, Paul. I took someone’s else’s child to the hearing. Of course this is her,” I rolled my eyes at him. I saw the anger behind them. He wasn’t very pleased, not at all.

“No need to be snappy because your royal life didn’t work out,” he said, staring right at me. Did he really just say that to me while Sarah was right there? At least he looked pleased with his insult. I looked at the woman beside him. She smiled at me nervously, she looked annoyed at him.

“I just want to meet you, sweetheart,” Paul said, trying to get Sarah’s attention but she wasn’t having it, at all. She shook her head at him and he looked at me angrily. He probably thought that I had something to do with this.

“C’mon, Prissy. Let’s go talk to our lawyer about this,” he took her hand and the woman obeyed. I sighed, of course, he’d be butthurt over this. He wasn’t present in the child’s life for five years, what did he expect? Hugs and kisses right away? A Father’s day card?

I hugged Sarah and watched a short woman wearing black robes enter the court room.

“Oh no. That’s Judge May,” Alyssa whispered behind me.

“What’s so special about this Judge?”

“She is a tough cookie and these custody battles usually don’t end well with her, both sides are usually unhappy with the outcome,” Alyssa said seriously.

“Both?!” I widened my eyes. Now I was really nervous. I took a big gulp of air before going in the court room.

Paul presented his case first and he made me sound like the mother who abandoned him and didn’t keep in touch. He told them that I broke up with him when I found out it was a girl. I shook my head and was so glad that my brother was already there, ready to testify against him because he was the one who found me that day when I had the big fight with Paul in public and he was the one who was with me when we walked to Paul’s house to confront him. But he finally revealed why he wanted a relationship with Sarah – his fiancee was four months pregnant and he “wanted them to be a real family”. I knew it was a load of crap – he probably didn’t even care enough. I did believe that his girlfriend probably insisted on it because from the way she talked about him and her family values – it sounded like she was the one pushing him. He wasn’t in touch for almost five years, of course he didn’t care at all. She did and probably confronted him about it, especially since she was having their child. For his fiancees sake, I was hoping it was a boy so he doesn’t run away from yet another little girl.

When it was time for me to testify, I was ready to debunk everything he had said and I did it as calmly as I could, asking my family to testify against him. We did pretty well, I even saw Judge May nodding her head a few times at our testimonies and widen her eyes at some of the facts we told, especially when I told her that he threatened my family and that was the reason why the girls joined me in Cordonia so soon. Paul looked furious and I was happy. I was happy that finally I could be the one to put him in his place after all these years. When I told the Judge that he never showed any interested in seeing his daughter, she looked like she believed me. She kept nodding her head at everything I said.

“Mr Robinson you may call on your witness,” Judge May said and she looked exhausted. It was a lot of information. Paul smiled devilishly. _What witness?_ I turned to my lawyer.

“What witness?”

“I sent you the email yesterday, they added a new witness. Daniel Ramirez, didn’t you get it?” she raised her eyebrow at me. I shook my head.

I couldn’t believe it. Paul was stooping to a new low. Using my former best friend? I gasped when I saw him. He looked good. He looked even more buff than he did before I left. He walked to the stand slowly and sat down.

“Would you say that Ashley Fabiano is an unfit mother?” Paul’s lawyer asked.

“No. She isn’t an unfit mother but she isn’t a very good one, either. She was dating around all the time, leaving her kid at home with her parents and her sister. She didn’t spend a lot of time with her, kept flirting with me, too. Her daughter needs a father figure in her life. I was the father figure until she dumped me to go have fun in Cordonia. That’s not a good environment for a child Sarah’s age. But did she think about that? No, she only thought about herself, as always, ” he said. I gasped at the words that were coming out of his mouth. Was he really that petty? When he finally looked my way, he looked angry. The Judge seemed surprised at this revelation.

“Now we’ll give a chance for the child to speak for herself,” she said and called Sarah to the stand. Sarah looked nervous there and I showed her a thumbs up. _It's going to be okay_ , I calmed myself.


	22. Secrets in Shenghai

“Miss Fabiano, how would you describe your mother?” Alyssa asked Sarah. She looked at me and smiled before she answered.

“I love her so much. She’s my favorite person in the whole world and I’m hers,” she excitedly answered.

“Has Daniel Ramirez been in your life for a long time?”

“Yes,” she nodded.

“Would you say that he’s like a father to you?” Alyssa raised an eyebrow. A chuckle escaped Sarah’s mouth.

“Noo. He was mommy’s good friend, I liked him. I didn’t want him to be my dad, ” she shook her head.

“Did you also tell that to your mother? That you didn’t want Daniel Ramirez as your father?”

“Yess. People kept telling us that we looked like a nice family but I didn’t want him as a dad,” Sarah looked at Daniel who widened his eyes in horror. He didn’t expect this – Sarah wasn’t as big of a Daniel fan as he thought she was. Whenever people asked me if we were together – Sarah was the first to say no because she liked him as a person but not as a father and I was okay with that. I didn’t see Daniel as boyfriend material anyway. I would never date anyone that Sarah didn’t approve of.

“Miss Fabiano, are you telling me that Mr Ramirez lied to us while on the stand?” Alyssa took a step closer to Sarah.

“Yes, he wasn’t like a dad to me and mommy didn’t date boys,” Sarah chuckled. I looked at Paul’s pale face. How did he even get in touch with Daniel?

“Your Honor, we’re done questioning her,” Alyssa smiled triumphantly at Paul and his lawyer.

They also questioned her but their line of questioning was a little weird for my tastes, the lawyer asked a lot of silly questions and tried to find out what Sarah knew about him. When she finally told him that she didn’t know anything about him and her dad didn’t know anything about her, everyone was stunned. Well, I wasn’t, I knew this already.

“Can I ask you some questions Sarah?” the Judge finally intervened.

“Yes!” she smiled at her.

“Did you ever wonder what your dad might be like? Surely you’ve met other dads and thought that yours might be something or someone great?” Judge May had the friendliest smile.

“No, grandma told me he left us. I don’t want him, either,” she sighed. It sounded so sad coming from her.

“What if he’s sorry and he wants to get to know you?”

“I don’t know him at all.”

“But he made such a fuss around you just to get to meet you?”

“I don’t care, I want to live with my mommy without him,” she shook her head and stared right at Paul. It was a rare sight to see her so angry. I felt her anger. I understood why. He’s never been there for her. Kids see right through that. After several minutes of talking to Sarah and getting the same answer from her, the judge summoned me and Paul to the stand.

___________________________________________

“How are you feeling? ” my mom asked when me and Sarah finally walked out of the court room.

“Weird, to be honest,” I sighed.

“At least it did go to your favor,” Rachel said. I rolled my eyes at her. That still didn’t mean that it was good enough.

“What? I just meant that I’ve actually been reading up on her cases – she usually awards 50/50 custody to parents, you got pretty lucky, considering,” she added and I nodded. I was still stressed and didn’t have much sleep, so I felt pretty shitty. We did get a reasonable hearing and everything did go our way. So why did I still feel like I didn’t fight enough?

“Okay, honey, I’ll see you in three months,” Paul waved at Sarah. She didn’t even wave back, she just kept staring at him.

“So what’s the deal? Will he come to Cordonia or you’ll be taking Sarah here to meet him?” Rachel asked.

“Rachel!” mom looked strictly at her.

“What? I wanna know!”

“We’ll probably do it here. His fiancee will be seven months pregnant and he wants to marry her by then, so we’re invited to the wedding, too, ” I sighed. It wasn’t ideal but it was something I’d have to deal with. The judge was nice enough to award me full custody but every three months Paul could have a week with Sarah if he wanted to see her. I would have to give her up to him for a week… I couldn’t even fathom that. I felt crushed, I’ve never spent that much time apart from her. Even when I was ready to when I flew to Cordonia to compete for Liam, Paul intervened and we spent the whole summer together. Sarah wasn’t pleased with this at all and she did show her disappointment to the judge but she was insistant that a child should get to know her father. She told us to call her in a year or two to check in with how everything is doing, especially since Sarah was going to get a sibling. I did feel like Sarah should meet her sibling and it didn’t even matter how I felt about it. A baby would probably make her happier to actually meet her father. Maybe he changed. Maybe something in his brain clicked and he was actually a changed man. I didn’t actually believe that but I gave myself the benefit of doubt. Maybe he wasn’t the monster I remembered him to be.

“Can we go now?” Sarah tugged on my pants and we walked to the car through the press and all the flashing lights from the cameras. _God, they’re annoying_ , I thought.

“Ashley!” I heard Daniel’s voice behind me. He was running towards us. I turned to him with a stone cold face.

“Yes?” I crossed my arms while staring at him.

“I’m glad you’re back in the real world,” he looked at me.

“I’m not, I’m just here for the custody hearing,” I shook my head and walked to my father’s car. I could feel his eyes staring right at my back but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to speak to him and I was super angry. I didn’t want to explode right in front of my family. I felt so betrayed by him. He knew. He knew everything about Paul, I told him everything – my pain, the lonely nights, the sadness that Sarah will never get to grow up with a father, and here he was, defending, HIM, out of all people? HIM?

“Mommy, do you hate Daniel now? Because I hate him, I hate hiim!” she shouted when we were in the car. I knew Sarah felt frustrated, just like I did. I shook my head.

“Of course not and you shouldn’t hate him either. He’s just acting silly,” I sighed. I tried to find the right words and not call him every bad word I know. I was so angry, I couldn’t wait to channel this anger into finding the actual culprit and to show him that I’m not a woman you can just mess with.

________________________________________

“Ashley?”

“What is it, Maxwell?” I was a bit annoyed because I was running late. Well, I actually wasn’t, but when I tell someone that I’m going to be there at 8 PM sharp, I actually expect to arrive at 8 PM sharp. Our plane was leaving at 9, but I wanted to say goodbye to my family without hurrying or worrying that I forgot something.

“Change of plans, we’re not going to start the engagement tour in the palace,” he sounded worried.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, we’re all flying to China, I’m packing my bags right now,” he cleared his mouth.

“Wait, what? I thought we were doing that later?”

“No, Hana’s parents were so proud and happy that their daughter was chosen to be Queen that they wanted it to host it there and made arrangements accordingly. We’re going tonight,” he sighed.

“Did you forget to tell me beforehand?”

“No! Honest! We all just found out, it was very last minute. You should’ve seen Bertrand and how angry he was! The plane that Liam arranged for you will come to Cordonia and then we’ll hop on it and we all will to go China,” he sounded exhausted.

“ _So it’s going to be a long ride._ Me and Sarah will be so jetlagged,” I sighed.

“Better bring a tablet full of cartoons with her,” he chuckled.

“I hate time zones,” I rolled my eyes.

“But how are you dealing with this?” I asked him when I remembered that I wasn’t the only one who had to pretend not to have feelings. Maxwell and Hana had just started dating when we ruined everything so that Hana could stay. He told me he was holding up okay but that he finally couldn’t take it anymore and told everything to Bertrand so that he was in the loop. Bertrand was going stir crazy because he couldn’t understand why out of everyone, Liam picked Hana. We talked for a while on videochat and I let him choose some of my outfits for the trip. When I was finally done, I told everyone about the change of plans. They all widened their eyes in surprise.

“Wow, Hana’s parents are really something,” Rachel said and I agreed. From everything I’ve heard about them, I was terrified to meet them.

“But listen, baby, when you land in Cordonia, you have to…” my mom started but I interrupted her.

“Find her a decent private school so that she would have friends her own age, I know, mom. You’ve told me this over and over again,” I rolled my eyes. I actually put Bertrand and Liam up to this task and I was nervous to see what they came up with. European preschools were far different than American ones. I was sure they would find the best school but I was worried about Sarah fitting in. She was very emotional. When she started preschool here, she cried almost every day for the first month and I was terrified of that happening again, it was soul crushing but I didn’t have a choice, as a working mom. Now I did have a choice – but she needed to bond with children of her own age and actually learn.

It was hard to say goodbye. In the two weeks we were here, we had so much family time and I had forgotten how much I loved spending time with my parents and how supportive they were. I promised to call more, especially before important events. Rachel was the hardest person to say goodbye to. I hugged her tightly.

“You go get them!” she smiled at me and I nodded.

“One more year and you’re free,” I smiled back and didn’t let her go for a while.

After I hugged Tom, I took Sarah by the hand, waved to everyone and went into the huge private plane.

“Mommy, I’m sleepy,” Sarah yawned.

“Me too, we’ll sleep on the plane,” I said happily and we took our seats in the lavish plane.

When we were in the air, I still couldn’t relax. Sarah was already fast asleep but I couldn’t do that – everything had changed. I thought that I’d at least have some time with Liam before they started the engagement tour but that plan had went away. It was all I longed for after these 2 weeks in New York -his comforting arms around me but we couldn’t even do that anymore. We did send each other some spicy texts during the two weeks but real life was always better. I had never longed for a man more than I did him – we’ve never even slept together but I desperately wanted that. I wanted not only the sex, I wanted to be with him, I wanted to talk to him at the end of the night, I wanted everyone to know that I was his and he was mine, I wanted a relationship with him and it felt like the world was working against me.

I finally managed to fall asleep, dreaming about Liam. When I was woken up by a happy Maxwell, I groaned. I wanted to keep dreaming. At least in my dreams we were still together.

“I’m excited to see you, too, sleepyhead!” he hugged me.

“I’m sorry, I just had the best dream,” I finally managed to smiled at him and yawned.

“It’s okay, I’ve been chatting away with this little one, ” he nodded at Sarah, who looked pretty happy, sitting next to him.

“How long have you been up?” I looked at her quizically. She was sitting in her seat next to me, her tablet tucked away in her back.

“I woke up when everyone boarded the plane,” Sarah said and smiled.

“Wait, who’s everyone?” I looked at Maxwell.

“Don’t worry, Madeleine, Kiara and Penelope took Kiara’s father’s plane, so we’re safe here,” he winked at me. I looked back and saw him.. He was smiling right at me. My Liam. He was sitting three rows behind me, by the window and he winked at me. I wiggled out of my seat, quickly greeted Bertrand, Olivia, Hana and Drake then plopped on the seat next to Liam.

“I was wondering when you’d stop snoring,” he chuckled. I widened my eyes.

“Did I snore?”

“No no, I was just kidding. And even if you did, it’d still be attractive,” he smiled and planted a kiss right on my mouth while no one was looking.

“Missed me?”

“You don’t know the half of it,” he smiled and took my hand into his. His hand felt so big, so protective. And I really wanted to be protected. I leaned my head onto his shoulder.

“I missed this,” he kissed my hand.

“How was Cordonia?”

“Oh you know, boring. Meetings after meetings, arrangements for the wedding and then the last minute invitation to China threw everyone in for a loop,” he sighed.

“What meetings?”

“Oh, about financing and business. It’s really not interesting,” he looked at me.

“But you find it fascinating?” I smiled. I knew he liked the things that most people considered boring, especially finances. He was very good at it and he liked being aware of everything that was going on. In Cordonia, the King usually handled a lot of financial things, created annual plans and dealt with a lot of everyday life, it wasn’t a monarchy like in the UK which was just for show, basically.

“I do. But I don’t want to bore you,” he whispered.

“Try me. If I do find it boring, I’ll tell you to stop,” I tried to convince him and he looked surprised.

“Do you really want to know? I’ve never had anyone ask for a detailed description of my meetings.”

“I’m not like most people,” I smiled.

“That is true,” he agreed. He looked delighted that I actually wanted to hear what his meetings were about.

We spent an hour talking about his plans to finance small businesses that did substantial charity work or helped the homeless and to motivate others to do the same and it wasn’t boring at all. I just found Liam more and more fascinating the more he kept talking. He was so passionate and had a big heart. That I knew already but it always surprised _how_ much heart he has. He wasn’t spoiled or entitled like other royals were, he was very grounded and he knew what direction he wanted to steer the country in. He had a clear vision and he was ready to achieve it. Cordonia couldn’t be in better hands.

“And how does anyone think that’s boring?” I looked at him in absolute amazement. This man was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. He not only wanted to better his own country but also help homeless people. I couldn’t fathom how anyone could find that boring. After a while, I stood up, ready to go back to my seat next to Sarah.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he gently touched my hand.

“I thought you might want some sleep before arriving in China,” I smiled back.

“Oh no, you’re not going anywhere,” he wasn’t ready to let me go just yet. And neither was I so I sat back down.

“I just thought that the King of Cordonia deserves some rest.”

“Not from you,” he smiled and gently touched my cheek. It felt right.

“So did you manage to find a clue about the culprit?” I asked excitedly. He didn’t seem to share my enthusiasm.

“Unfortunately not. Me and Hana didn’t have enough time, we had to give interviews and deal with the press, and the others didn’t seem to find anything,” he sighed in defeat.

“It’ll be okay, we’ll be okay,” I took his hand into mine. _It had to be._

“Ashley, look!” I heard Liam’s voice and opened my eyes immediately. I had managed to fall asleep somehow.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, we’re landing,” he pointed at the window where there were so many lights. Thousands and thousands of them, they seemed like tiny ants.

“Wow, what time is it in China?” I yawned.

“5 AM,” Liam answered quickly, looking at his watch.

“Did you sleep at all?”

“A little,” he smiled at me. When we landed, I walked over to Sarah and took her by the hand. We were about to meet Hana’s parents and I was so nervous. They didn’t know the whole situation and from what I knew, they weren’t the most understanding of people.

Liam and Hana exited the plane first, followed by Drake and Olivia, then me and Sarah and the Beaumont brothers were right behind us.

We walked to a designed space where Hana finally greeted her parents with a quick hug and they shook Liam’s hand. They shared a joke which I didn’t hear very well and then they just started walking. _So this was it? No hi, hey, hello to us?_ I sighed. They were probably not interested in other people but just the king. They looked as strict as they did in the pictures I’ve seen of them. Her mother was beautiful but you could tell by the way she walked and talked, that she liked controlling. She probably had to be in control _of everything_ in her life. Her hair was perfect, her facial expressions firm and the way she walked, she reminded me more of a robot than a person. Or, at least, a laid back person. Her father, on the other hand, was a little shorter than her mother but he didn’t seem so strict. He had kind eyes. And if I’ve ever learned anything in this life, it was that the eyes don’t lie. His posture was more laid back and he made most of the jokes to lighten the mood. His wife didn’t look so happy about it.

“So? What you think of them?” Maxwell whispered in my ear.

“I haven’t even talked to them yet,” I shook my head at him and chuckled.

“Yeah, Hana already prepared me for this – they weren’t keen on talking with strangers, especially from Cordonia,” he sighed. Did this mean that they really wouldn’t approve of Maxwell as their daughter’s suitor?

They lead us to the outside of the airport where King Constantine, Queen Regina and the rest of the suitors were standing. Bastien stood in front of them, looking very concerned.

“Hello everyone! I’m Xinghai and this is my lovely wife, Lorelai. I’d just like a moment to announce how happy I am that you could all make it to Shanghai in such a short notice. I know you had other plans and to celebrate at the palace but we just couldn’t have it that way! We wanted you to have a look at what we have to offer. We’ll start today with a tour of our nature reserve and after that I want to celebrate the engagement of our lovely daughter Hana with a big feast in our favorite restaurant,” Hana’s father started.

“We’re all very excited about this! I hope you enjoy yourselves, we’ve prepared hotel rooms for all of you personally, I’m sure you’ll find it to your standart. A motorcade will come after you when it’s time to go to the nature reserve, ” Hana’s mother finished the speech and smiled at everyone, expecting cheers. And cheers she did get. Not very enthusiastic but she didn’t seem to mind.

When we finally got to our room, I sighed. I still felt jetlag even after sleeping so much. Or maybe the sleep was causing the jetlag?

“Mommy, does Hana’s mommy know that you love Liam?” Sarah suddenly asked.

“No, honey and she can’t find out. At least, not for a while,” I looked at her seriously. I could see that she was puzzled by this.

“Why?”

“Because we’ve set up a plan, remember? We’ll have our own secret,” I smiled at her.

“So we’re kinda like spies?” she smiled excitedly.

“Yes, totally!” I matched her excitement.

“And this will be our super secret room?”

“Yes!”

“I’m in!” she jumped around happily and hugged me. I wished everything in life was as easy as talking to her. We changed our clothes, I wore a simple blue skater-type dress with lace at the top and Sarah chose a yellow dress with flowers. I sighed. I missed matching with Sarah and Rachel already. I wished I could talk to Rachel right now, she’d probably be so happy to get to see China and we could talk about how snooty Hana’s parents seemed. I wanted to vent to her so badly right now.

“I hope you’re ready because we’re leaving in ten minutes,” Maxwell said, walking into our room, not even knocking.

“We’re ready, we’re ready!” Sarah kept jumping around.

“How are you holding up?” Maxwell put his hand on my shoulder. I sighed.

“I’m actually fine. Just missing Rachel,” I said and he nodded.

“It’s going to be okay, at least we’ll get to see cute animals today,” Maxwell said and I forced a smile. Animals always made me feel a lot better.

We heard another knock at the door and when Maxwell opened it, Hana was standing there.

“Hey, hurry up, we leave in seven minutes!” Hana smiled at all of us and rushed us out the door into the cars. It wasn’t a long ride to the reserve but everything looked fascinating. We drove past such high buildings and skyscrapers. The reserve was just a few minute ride outside the town so it felt surreal. We were surrounded by trees and bamboo, the air was fresh. It seemed like it’d be a perfect day.

“Finally,” I heard Madeleine’s voice behind me. _Or so I thought_.

“Hi Madeleine,” I smiled politely back at her. She scoffed and looked at the tour guide.

“Can we finally start?” she sounded annoyed.

“We’re just waiting for one special appearance,” the tour guide smiled at Madeleine, hoping that it’d calm her down but that just made her more annoyed.

“Everyone’s here already anyway,” she rolled her eyes.

“Not quite, Countess Madeleine,” we heard a deep voice. As I turned around, I noticed that it was Hana’s father. Was he the one we were waiting for?

The tour guide cleared his mouth and quickly started telling us more about the reserve. Lots of ooh’s and aah’s were said as we walked further. Hana was walking next to Liam and her father,who looked very proud beside them. He talked and they all giggled and seemed to have a great time. I felt my insecurities creeping in again so I turned to Sarah and Maxwell.

“Hey, look at the cute panda bears!” I said, pointing at the panda bear cubs who were tripping over each other and playfully fighting each other.

“They’re soooo cute!” Sarah agreed and we stopped so that we could watch them for a while. One of them kept tumbling around until it noticed us staring, so it slowly approached us. Maxwell picked up and cuddled with it, Sarah delightfully pet it and I stared at the animal in awe. It was one of the most adorable things I had ever seen. We were approached by Drake and Olivia. Olivia smiled at the little cub and I smiled at her.

“Olivia, do you find pandas adorable?”

“Absolutely no.. okay, yes. They are adorable. How can you not like them? ” she squaled when one of the baby pandas approached her and she pet it carefully. Drake was watching her with a smirk on his face but he didn’t touch the baby animals.

“Do you not like pandas, Drake?” I asked, raising an eyebrow in his direction. He shrugged.

“They’re okay, I guess.”

“I’ll pretend you didn’t just say that,” Olivia shook her head and kept talking to the baby panda in a cutesy voice. Liam and Hana finally joined us with Hana’s father. He nodded at all of us politely.

“Ni-hao, Mr. Lee,” I smiled, trying to impress him with the fact that I only could say one word in Chinese. He smiled at me. Did it work?

“Ni-hao,” he replied, his smile fading fast.

“They’re adorable, ” Hana said, looking at the baby pandas.

“They’re the best!” Sarah agreed.

“Come now, we don’t want to be late for your own engagement dinner,” Hana’s father looked at all of us expentantly.

“But the baby pandas!” Maxwell protested.

“You can still visit them while you’re here but I’m afraid that Lorelai won’t appreciate us being late to this important engagement dinner. Let’s go, shall we?” he pointed at the exit with his head. All of us sighed. There was no point in arguing with the owner of the reserve. Hana tried to plead with her father but he shook his head no multiple times, not even listening to her at all. Was this how Hana was raised? Having just a little bit of fun and then being ushered off to her responsiblities? I looked at her and saw that there were tears forming in her eyes but her father didn’t budge. He really loved his wife… _or feared her_.

“I’m sorry guys,” she said so quietly it was merely a whisper.

“It’s okay, Hana. You tried,” Olivia said sadly. We all stood up and started walking away, Sarah was quiet but I could tell that she was crushed.

“We’ll absolutely come here again,” I told her and she nodded.

When we all arrived at the restaurant, the mood was already soiled. Everyone felt sad and it wasn’t just because of the pandas, it was more-so how Hana’s father treated Hana. At least, for me. It felt wrong. It felt disrespectful and wrong, my insides were angry and shaking just because of this.

We were walking in the restaurant when Olivia caught up with me and whispered in my ear.

“I just got proof that Tariq made arrangements for you to be in that room.” I stopped in my tracks right away and widened my eyes at her. I led Sarah into the restaurant and asked Maxwell to keep an eye on her for a few minutes, while I stepped back out and looked at Olivia.

“How?”

“A maid there finally cracked under the pressure of Lythikos spymasters. Actually, to be completely honest, she confessed to everything when they tried to question her, but right now we have more than enough proof to prove that this was pre-meditated and to prove his intentions of harming you. If we can get ahold of him and get him to Cordonia, we can charge him. Charge him really good and this time it will stick, the King of Cordonia is on our side. The maid has accounts of other girls, too,” Olivia whispered.

“What’s the plan? ” I looked at her.

“When we find the culprit, we’ll find out where Tariq is and use Liam’s power as King to charge this vile man.”

“I think it’s the former king,” I confessed. I couldn’t take this anymore – I had to tell someone. I wanted to tell that to everyone during the meeting before Liam’s coronation but he was very upset with Maxwell. I didn’t want him to feel outnumbered.

“Thank God, I do, too. I thought it was foolish not to think it was him. But we need to prove it,” Olivia sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed this version of Book 2 right now. Where do you think Tariq could be hiding? Thank you for reading! :)


	23. The Secret Hookup

“Prove what, Olivia?” Madeleine asked as she entered the restaurant with Kiara beside her. They eyed us carefully as we eyed them. They both reminded me of the stuck up girls I had to go to highschool with. They had the same posture and by the looks of their faces, they did think they were somehow better than us. Madeleine definitely did, Kiara was just probably too influenced by Madeleine at this point.

“Nothing that concerns you, I’m afraid,” Olivia sneered at her.

“Mannerless as always, Olivia. Kiara, let’s go see where Mr and Mrs Lee have seated us, ” she nudged Kiara to move forward.

“I’ll never understand why Kiara hangs out with that shrew,” Olivia shook her head.

“I don’t think she’s as bad as she wants you to think,” and as I said the words, Olivia looked at me like I said something horrendous.

“You can’t possibly believe that?”

“Not everyone is as bad as you want them to be.”

“You must be joking,” she pretended to gasp and I gently pushed her through the doors to get in the restaurant. We chuckled and as the door opened, we were greeted with a nice waiter who took us to the tables we were assigned to. Of course, Hana and Liam were sitting together with their parents while the rest of us were scattered like mice. I was sitting with Drake, Madeleine and Bertrand while Olivia was seated next to Kiara, Penelope and Maxwell. And Sarah went over at their table because she wanted to sit next to Maxwell. Maxwell asked if Sarah could stay with them and how could I even say no? I looked at my table. _Well, this wasn’t going to be awkward at all, is it?_

Hana’s parents made a big speech how it was such an honor to be with the King of Cordonia and how amazing we all were to come with them. When they finally ended their very long speech about honor, they let us enjoy the food. I was starving.

When we finally finished eating, I looked over to Liam’s and Hana’s table. There they were, conversing nicely, with their parents. And it seemed like they were meant to be, yet again. Luckily, I knew she pined for Maxwell, the way she stole glances at his table and kept looking over. Liam didn’t even look up from his table and I secretly hoped that it was just because he felt like he couldn’t risk it.

“Hm?” I looked over at Bertrand who asked me something that I didn’t hear.

“How was the custody hearing?” Bertrand asked again.

“Oh… it went pretty okay,” I sighed.

“What does that mean?” Drake raised an eyebrow.

“Well, I got custody of her but every three months Paul actually gets to be with her for a week. And Sarah told the judge multiple times that she didn’t want to see or hear from him. But he was going to be a father again so the judge thought it’d be beneficial for Sarah to meet her sibling,” my shoulders slumped. There were very few people I trusted Sarah to be overnight with – I couldn’t imagine leaving her with him. His fiancee seemed competent and Sarah was big enough that she didn’t need special care, she didn’t have allergies or anything but I still felt scared. I knew it was because I was afraid that she’d actually like it there. I was still hurt emotionally and had to process my own emotions – and this totally didn’t help.

“That judge sounds very incompetent,” I heard Madeleine say. We all looked at her in astonishment. _She really thought that?_

“What? I’m a lovely person when you get to know me. I’d be hurt if a judge didn’t listen to my plea, too. I’ve heard what a jackass Paul was and not only to you but to Sarah,” she rolled her eyes.

“You have?” I kept staring at her.

“Oh please, I’ve read what Maxwell writes on those gossip forums, trying to defend your actions. And everyone else’s. He claimed to be “close” to the royal family. Ha! Even the commoners know it’s Maxwell… Don’t think he’s the only one trying to find what mean things are being said about him or his house,” she sighed.

“Wait, what? What has Maxwell written on there?”

“Your whole story with Paul. Of course, he cited you as a “credible source” and also posted it from the account BeaumontLove02, ” she shook her head.

“What’s your account name, Madeleine?” Drake asked. He seemed amused with this revelation. I didn’t know how to feel – on one hand I liked the fact that my story was out there and people knew what kind of person Paul really was but on the other hand, I liked my privacy. I liked that people didn’t know that much about me and that most of what happened was just speculation.

“It’s not important..” Madeleine looked away from him, as if she was shy. I knew she wasn’t.

“C’mon, we’re all friends here,” he shot her a friendly smile. Too friendly. I raised my eyebrow at him. _Was he flirting with Madeleine?_ Was I trapped in some other dimension where Drake actually could flirt? I shook my head in disbelief.

“Maddy911,” she confessed quietly and looked at Drake. Did she blush? Was she flirting back? What was happening? I sat there in my own amazement. I looked at Bertrand and he shook his head, he was also amazed at what was happening. Should I tell Olivia? I couldn’t believe it, was Drake really into Madeleine?

“See? It wasn’t that hard, was it?” Drake kept smiling at her. It felt so strange, unnatural. They kept flirting back and forth and I knew it wasn’t any of my business so I quickly excused myself and went to the bathroom. When I got there, Olivia was pacing next to the door of the bathroom, cursing.

“What was Drake doing with Madeleine? She smiled at him! He smiled back! I saw it with my own two eyes!” Olivia hissed quietly.

“That was weird, it seemed like Drake was flirting, ” I confessed.

“Flirting? He was flirting with _HER_?” she hissed even louder. Her facial expression changed, she went from enraged to sad in less than five seconds. She started sobbing suddenly and I was caught off-guard. She looked like she’d fall down so I nudged her to go into the bathroom and locked the door.

“You’ll be okay,” I held her in my arms while she sobbed.

“I’ve really lost him… but… I thought…I thought we’d be okay,” she muttered in my ear.

“It’s going to be okay, I promise,” I kept repeating to her over and over again. I didn’t know whether it was true and I did not understand what was going on but it did feel like Drake was interested in Madeleine and that must have hurt. A lot. Especially since it was in front of everyone. A few minutes passed in silence. Olivia stopped sobbing and was cleaning herself up in the mirror.

“Ashley, is everything okay? You’ve been there quite a while, almost everyone noticed that you and Olivia are gone,” I heard Maxwell’s voice through the bathroom door.

“Just fixing up my makeup!” I shouted at him.

“Okay well Sarah’s been asking for you,” he said and Olivia opened the door for me.

“I can stay with you a little while longer,” I told Olivia but she shook her head.

“Your daughter needs you,” she smiled at me so I walked away, still hoping that Drake wasn’t actually interested in Madeleine. When I walked back, Sarah was already waiting for me. We talked, ate cake and waited for Olivia. When she finally emerged, she looked as fierce as ever. She talked to everyone, except Drake. Yes, she even held a conversation with Madeleine and it wasn’t even a catty one, she complimented her and for that I applauded her in my head. I knew she could do it – she could be the bigger woman and I was happy to see her change from a childish Duchess to a grown woman right before my very eyes.

When the dinner was over, I felt exhausted. So did Sarah, so we agreed to go to our hotel room and enjoy room service and a movie. She wanted to see episodes of “The Crown and The Flame” since it was based on Cordonia but I didn’t let her see it yet. She was too young to see all the violence and death but I did agree to watch some of her favorite cartoons.

All of us walked outside and when Hana’s and Liam’s parents were gone, all of the nobles took a breather. It was hard being in their presence, they were all so demanding.

“Hey Hana?” Madeleine asked.

“Yes?”

“I’ve heard that there are a bunch of night markets here in Shanghai and I’d love to see them, if you’d show us around?” she smiled at her. Hana sighed but nodded. I knew she was exhausted, too. Everyone seemed to agree but me and Sarah walked to our limo. Liam stopped us.

“Ashley, are you not going?” he smiled at me. I shook my head.

“I promised Sarah we’d watch some cartoons and order room service at the hotel,” I looked at him.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course. We’re very tired, aren’t we?” I looked to Sarah and she backed me up.

“Very very tired. We need movies and snacks to make us feel better,” Sarah rubbed her belly.

“Didn’t we just eat a three course meal and a cake?” Liam chuckled.

“We always have room for snacks!” Sarah said and I agreed. We did always have room for snacks, especially ice cream. Back in New York, me and Sarah even had on our freezer which nobody really cared for – just us. We packed it with all the discount ice cream we could get our hands on and basically had an unending supply of it. We couldn’t even eat it all – but it was comforting to know it was there whenever we needed it.

“I’ll miss you both,” he smiled and before kissing my cheek, he looked around so that there was no press or others watching. He kissed Sarah on the cheek, too. She blushed.

“Kissed by a king! Imagine that mommy,” she said excitedly when we hopped into the limo.

When we arrived at the hotel room, both of us just lay on the bed for a few minutes. We were so tired. When I finally sat upright, I called room service and got us the most exclusive ice cream there was and we watched “Dora The Explorer” until Sarah fell asleep. When she did, I shut off the tv and stared at the darkness. I couldn’t sleep. What were they doing? Was I actually missing out on quality time by not going? I shook my head when I heard Sarah snoring beside me. No, this was much better. She was the most important person in my life. I put the blanket over her, tucked her in and planted a kiss on her little forehead. She was the best.

When I finally managed to fall asleep, there was a knock at my door. Half-asleep and trying not to knock down the lamp, I stood up and opened the door in my robe. Hana was standing in front of me and she looked clearly drunk.

“Is this a bad time?” she asked. Hana reeked of alcohol. I shook my head. She was always welcome.

“Just one request, let’s talk in the bathroom so that we don’t wake Sarah,” I said and she agreed. We slowly tiptoed our way into the bathroom. Hana broke into a giggle so I quickly closed the bathroom door.

“So what’s going on?” I asked, trying to open both of my eyes at the same time because I was blinded by the bathroom light. Hana slumped her shoulders.

“I missed you so much tonighttt… You don’t know how much life you actually bring to these parties, Ashleeey,” Hana shook her head.

“I’m glad you think that,” I smiled.

“Me and Olivia had a blast, but it wasn’t the same withooout you, you know?” she gestured.

“Is Olivia okay?”

“Oh! Oh! That’s the best part! We actually decided to become friends tonight!” she said excitedly.

“Wait, I thought you were already friends,” I chuckled. Hana shook her head for a long time.

“No, no, noooo. We weren’t exactly _friends_. We were friendlyyyy. But now we burried the hatched and became real friendsss! The fun part was when we were stalking Drake and Madeleine!” she giggled.

“What? Why would you?”

“It was Olivia’s idea. We went to the market, then Kiara wanted to get wasted at a bar and told us that the market was sooo boring, we bought some random things with Liam and Maxwell and went to a bar, got drunk and just walked around Shanghai. Then we saw Drake and Madeleine heading off somewhere. We stalked them and when they finally noticed us, Olivia!! Oh, that sweet Olivia, she told Drake off!”

“What do you mean?” I raised an eyebrow. The way Hana described the situation was really funny, she used her hand gestures and kept slurring her words but I tried not to laugh. The image of the two of them walking through the streets of Shanghai and stalking Drake seemed too good to be true.

“She told him that he could date whomever he wanted! That they were officially over and that he was a ..”

“He was a?”

“A dick, Ashley! A dick! Can you believe it? Sshe saaaid that to him! In person!” Hana kept giggling at herself. I joined in the giggling. That was quite funny. I could only imagine Drake’s surprise.

“I’m sorry, Ashley,” she said with a sigh. It was a sad tone.

“For what?”

“For all of this… You should’ve been the one to mmmarry Lliam… not me. Both of us know that,” she sighed. I shook my head.

“I knew what I signed up for. Hana, we wanted to keep you here and this was the best chance. Yes, it’s sad but it’s okay. Everything’s okay,” I squeezed her hand.

“Ashley? You know who’s the bessst? You areee, I love you so much, bestiee,” Hana kept going on and on.

“Ookay there sweetheart, I think I should put you to bed,” I smiled at her.

“You’re the best, you know? Ashley? You’re the bessst. I missed youu so much tonight. You’re honestlyy the best,” she said sadly. I helped her undress and I put her on the bed that Sarah was supposed to sleep in. It was actually a way too big of a bed for Sarah so she slept with me in the same bed. _I just hope Olivia doesn’t come in or I’ll have to sleep on the floor,_ I thought while tucking Hana into her bed.

“You’re truly the bessst, ” she smiled at me. At this moment Hana seemed like a small child. She was so cute. I truly couldn’t understand how could Hana’s parents treat Hana more like property rather than a human being with their own feelings, dreams and goals. She was well versed in everything. And what for? Her parents were probably proud right now and not because of her achievements but because of whom she gets to marry. That was so unfair. I sighed as I stood up to go to my own bed. I put an arm around Sarah before falling asleep.

Me and Sarah woke up early in the morning to visit the nature reserve again. We left Hana sleeping there and didn’t dare to wake her up. I knew she was going to be hungover.

“We’ll eat breakfast after we get to the reserve,” I promised Sarah as we left the hotel.

When we finally arrived there, me and Sarah explored every little inch of the reserve. We searched for the best hiding spots, played hide and seek and even got to play with the cute little pandas again. We ate our breakfast in the little cafe they had at the reserve and when we finally walked outside, Hana’s father was standing at the entrace, talking to someone and went wide-eyed when he saw us leaving. He didn’t look happy to see us. I smiled at him politely and he nodded with his head.

“Isn’t that Hana’s dad?” Sarah asked, pointing at him.

“Doesn’t look like he’s happy to see us,” I sighed and we walked into the limo. We went to the shopping district to buy souvenirs for our family back at home – some magnets, cool mugs, some clothes, sunglasses. Something that we knew they’d like. When we got back to the hotel room, Hana was still there and she was very awake. She looked as tired as ever but still good. How did she do that? Whenever I was hangover, I looked terrible with bloodshot eyes and there she was – still looking like a princess.

“Oh hey! I’m so sorry about last night, Ashley. I didn’t mean to bother you,” she smiled apologetically.

“It’s fine, I really didn’t mind. It was actually a bit of fun,” I smiled back.

“Did you have a sleepover without me?” Sarah narrowed her eyes at us. Me and Hana shared a look and shook our heads no.

“Then why do you look so guilty?” she looked at Hana.

“I feel bad because I woke your mother up last night,” she sighed. I chuckled.

“It’s okay, it really is,” I said and I really meant it. It was okay. I did miss hanging out with Hana so even hearing her having fun with Olivia made me happy. I was worried about her and how hard this all must be on her. Everyone’s eyes were on her, scrutinizing and watching her every move, especially since she was supposedly engaged to Liam. She never had a stress-free life but this was stress on a whole another level.

We spent the whole day with Hana, ordering room service and watching cartoons. She told us that the reason why she loved them as an adult was because she never got to enjoy cartoons as a child. Me and Sarah shared a look.

“You can always watch cartoons with us, whenever you’re sad,” Sarah said, hugging her tight.

“I’m sorry,” Hana said when Sarah fell asleep next to me.

“For what?”

“For last night. Barging in like that, being drunk, I was such a big mess and this whole thing with Liam, I feel like it’s driven a wedge between us. I’ll try to do better from now on,” she sighed sadly.

“Don’t worry, Hana. I’ll never get mad at you for that. You can come and talk to me whenever you want to, even when you’re so drunk you slur your words. And the thing about the engagement is – we all know it’s not real. I do feel weird about it but I’ll make more of an effort to not make it weird, I’m sorry if I have been distant. But look at the bright side – when this is all over, you get to be with Maxwell again,” I smiled at her and she smiled back.

“I miss him so much,” she said and I nodded. We talked for a few minutes and calmed each other down about our doubts until she decided it was time to go back to her grande suite. She promised to pop in before the tea party tomorrow. I nodded and closed the door. I let the darkness consume the room and tried so hard to fall asleep. Liam texted me today but I didn’t answer. I didn’t even know why – I knew his engagement to Hana was fake but it still rubbed me the wrong way. Why? My brain was weird. I wasn’t angry at Hana but somehow I felt angry with Liam. Why was I so complicated?

The whole morning me and Sarah spent at the reserve again and when we finally got back to our hotel room, Maxwell was there, shouting at the phone and Bertrand was pacing around.

“Oh, finally! Where were you? I tried to call you a million times!” Maxwell sighed in relief.

“My battery died,” I smiled apologetically and showed him the dark screen of my phone.

“Charge it at once!” Bertrand said and passed me my charger.

“What’s so special about this tea party?” I took the charger from him and plugged it into my phone.

“We’re being introduced to a new addition to our court for this social season!” Bertrand said nervously.

“Wait, what?”

“Yes, Hana’s parents arranged a few bachelors to come and join us for the rest of the royal engagement tour,” Maxwell said casually.

“What does that mean?”

“It’s a chance for the rest of the ladies who didn’t get engaged, to set their sights on other available men in court,” Bertrand continued casually.

“So that others could get their happy ending?” I smiled when I said the words.

“No, I don’t think Hana’s parents had that in mind. I think they probably owed a favor to these men and offered to help them find a suitable bride, after all, the King can only marry one of his many suitors,” Maxwell sighed. I patted his back.

“You know we’ll find a way to stop them from getting married,” I tried to encourage him.

“I know,” he smiled. There was a knock at the door and Hana peaked out of it.

“I came with the dresses!” she said excitedly and closed the door.

“What dresses?” Sarah asked her.

“I custom made these for you when my parents asked us to come to Shanghai, it’s similar to mine but yours are red,” she smiled and put the dresses on the bed. She was wearing a traditional Chinese dress – it was tight on her slim figure.

“Wow, Hana, I don’t know what to say,” I was speechless. This was unexpected and the dress was so beautiful – red as Olivia’s hair and it had lace all over it. It was a tight bodycon dress but I liked it. I tried it on and it fit like a glove. Sarah’s dress was a bit different, she had the dress from the same material as mine but it was skater type of a dress. I couldn’t stop looking in the mirror at the both of us.

“You really made these?” Sarah asked while twirling in hers.

“Me and the tailor that works for my parents,” she smiled at Sarah.

“I can’t thank you enough, Hana,” I smiled at her.

“No need to thank me, just wear them today!” she smiled and we agreed. Could we even say no? I didn’t want to, at all. I had some finishing touches to do and then we all finally proceeded to walk to the motorcade. Finally, because Bertrand was going crazy – Hana and Maxwell were flirting with each other the whole time I was doing my makeup and braiding Sarah’s hair – he couldn’t wait to get away from the lovebirds.

We basically had to run to the motorcade. We finally reached our destination – a beautiful tea garden. The garden was decorated in beautiful pastel colored bushes, everything seemed like from a fairytale. The pathways were made out of tiny pebbles. Everyone gathered around the main tea house and we started the tea ceremony. It was televised – news reporters were filming us but from afar since the Lee family didn’t allow them any further. For that I was thankful because I wanted a private moment with Liam but it was hard enough to get him alone these days.

After the tea ceremony, I walked further alone, hoping that Liam would notice. I looked back and he didn’t. He just kept talking with his and Hana’s parents. I sighed. I didn’t know what I was hoping for – I was the one who ignored him first and then expected he’d run after me. Of course this wasn’t how things were done but just sometimes I wanted him to chase me. It wasn’t easy chasing him.

As I walked further, deep in thought, I bumped into a denim jacket. Drake. We hadn’t spoken privately in a while and I suddenly felt awkward in his presence.

“Sorry,” I mouthed nervously.

“It’s okay, nothing spilled,” he checked his jacket just to be sure.

“So… how are you?” I asked, not wanting to say bye yet. I still wanted to be his friend despite all the drama that went on with us and ever since it happened, I always felt awkward in his presence. I didn’t want to feel that way anymore. Especially since he’s had other romantic interests since then…

“I’ve been better. And you? I know this must be hard with Liam being engaged to a friend publicly,” he pointed at Liam who was standing beside Hana and talking with their parents.

“I’m just… peachy,” I smiled at him.

“That sounds just like you, Fabiano,” he chuckled.

“What ever do you mean, Walker?”

“When it feels like everything’s crashing down, you’re here making jokes. At least you have a sense of humor,” he smiled at me.

We both looked at Madeleine who was being dragged away by Kiara. That seemed strange. Madeleine was protesting but Kiara wasn’t having it and Madeleine gave up and walked next to her.

“Should we follow them?” Drake raised an eyebrow.

“They are acting quite strange. Do you think it’s something we should know?”

“I’d bet my life on it. Something was off in their body language and I want to know what.”

“So are you and Madeleine… you know?” I asked, matching Drake’s step and walking further with him down the pebbled pathways. We walked quickly but not too quick not to arouse suspicion of everyone else.

“Me and Madeleine? We’re friendly,” he shot me an innocent smile, pretending not to understand what I was asking.

“Oh, c’mon, Walker. I saw something at the engagement dinner, there was something there,” I smiled.

“Well..” he sighed and we picked up the pace and walked further into the garden where we saw Madeleine and Kiara trail off. And then we saw them behind the tiny tea house.

Madeleine’s and Kiara’s mouths were on each other and it looked like they were trying to devour each other. They didn’t even notice us at all, they were too into their little passions.

“I don’t think me and Madeleine will be THAT friendly anytime soon,” Drake widened his eyes.

“You learn something new every day,” I said when we slowly walked back to the main party. Why was Madeleine flirting with Drake if she was so into Kiara? I had so many questions. This court had too many secrets.


	24. Expect the Unexpected

When we walked back, we did so very slowly so that we could have a private conversation. Drake told me about his adventures ( or lack of) in the palace for the past two weeks and I told him about New York and my brother. We both had a lot to catch up on. It was so nice to actually speak to him again, without attachments or anything on the line. Just two friends catching up.

“There you are!” Maxwell and Sarah ran up to me and Drake. I smiled them and hugged Sarah with one arm.

“Having fun?” I asked Sarah and she nodded.

“Are you having with fun Drake, mommy?” as she asked, I turned to look at Drake. We shared a knowing smile.

“Oh, you know, we actually were having fun,” I nodded at her and we walked further in.

“What were you doing?”

“Oh, you know, took a walk, talked, saw some people,” Drake chuckled. I was actually happy for Madeleine, I just didn’t know why they were hiding this from us. Maybe she was afraid we’d not accept them? That would explain a lot.

Three men I had never seen before were standing in front of the main tea house where Liam was standing. They all were so different from each other. One of them was a lot shorter, shaven clean, standing in his tweed jacket, looking around. He looked so annoyed. One of the taller ones was wearing a nice suit, he was a lot darker and he had a tiny beard. Him and the third man were smiling at each other. The third one stood out the most – he had a full on beard, crazy messed up, long brown hair. He was wearing a biker jacket. He had the “bad boy” look covered. Next to him, Drake looked like a cute puppy.

“Are those the…”

“Suitors? Yeah, they’re waiting to be officially introduced,” Maxwell smiled and we all looked at Hana’s parents who weren’t done talking to Liam’s parents yet. After a while the guy with the biker jacket went over them, said something and Hana’s parents nodded.

“Dear friends and family! It’s time to introduce the new male suitors for this season that we’ve chosen. They’re all respectable nobles and will be treated as such. This is Lord Neville Vancoeur, future Earl of Cormery Isle, ” Hana’s father pointed at the man with the tweed jacket. Everyone applauded and the future earl nodded, as if happy that he finally got some recognition.

“And this is Lord Rashad, the heir to Duchy Domvallier,” Hana’s mother pointed out at the man in the suit. He also nodded at the applause.

“And this is our dear friend Noah. He doesn’t have a title but he is a very succesful businessman and any of you would be lucky to have him as your suitor,” Hana’s father continued. Everyone clapped for Noah aswell. He walked next to Mr Lee and took over his speech.

“No need to clap for me, I’m just here to find a person with whom I could share my life with, nothing special about me, but I’m very glad to be here,” he said in a gruff voice. I looked around – almost all of the ladies here were outright staring at him and fluttering their eyelashes. Of course.

Madeleine and Kiara joined us after the introductions. Penelope practically ran to them, she probably didn’t like being left alone for so long.

Finally, Liam was moving towards me. Slowly but surely. He walked up to us and exhaled.

“Well that was an exhausting day,” he smiled at us.

“I bet,” I nodded. Sarah hugged his leg.

“I missed you, Liam,” she said sadly.

“I missed you too, little mermaid girl,” he tickled her cheek with his finger and she giggled. He gave her that nickname after learning that her favorite Disney princess was Ariel. Sarah smiled and started running laps around us.

Hana walked behind him and she also exhaled loudly.

“Hana! You’re absolutely stunning!” Maxwell said and she smiled at him, gratefully.

“That was intense,” she shook her head.

“What did you guys talk about?”

“Hana’s parents were going on and on about the wedding preperations and how much should they prepare for ..” Liam sighed.

“I already told them that they shouldn’t do anything yet,” Hana said sadly.

“And then they started questioning us and asking if it was because we felt like we betrayed you or if you demanded that we do this slowly…”

“They didn’t even let Liam or me speak, at all,” as Hana said the words, I knew why. They were control freaks – of course they wanted to know everything and be in control of everything.

“They probably suspect something and they want to rush the wedding,” I said.

“But why?” Hana asked. I looked at her. Oh, dear Hana. _Couldn’t you see?_

“They probably want to make sure that the throne and your place as the Queen of Cordonia is as secure as it can be, they don’t want me meddling and ruining it. Your parents have been looking at me weirdly, especially your father. Like he was worried. I don’t think your parents are going to sit idly by if I’m still in court, if they consider me a threat,” I admitted.

“Ashley, are you sure? ” Liam asked. He looked puzzled and I knew it was because this sounded bad. And it was. Why did Liam have to think of everyone being a goody two shoes? Not everyone shared his kind heart, unfortunately.

“I’m pretty sure,” I nodded, glancing at Noah, who was, unsurprisingly staring right back at me. He smiled and so did I.

“Me too,” Hana backed me up.

“Hana, even you think your own parents would be plotting against Ashley?” Liam couldn’t hide his surprise.

“Honestly, I wouldn’t put it past them. They aren’t the best of people, and I still love them because they’re my parents but I can see through them. This means too much to them,” Hana nodded.

“What can we do?” Liam sounded desperate. I smiled at him. _Oh, my sweet Liam._

“Nothing – we can’t let them suspect a thing and we can’t be seen together a lot,” I said. It was sad but I knew it was the truth – we couldn’t let them know WE were actually scheming, otherwise they may plot something against us at the last minute. I didn’t want to be thrown off. I was determined to stop their wedding, I only hoped that they were as determined as I was.

“My parents aren’t coming with us to Cordonia so that must be a relief, they won’t be watching over us there,” Hana tried to make a light of the situation.

“No, they won’t. But you know who will be there? A spy that works for them,” with my head, I pointed to the guy in the black leather jacket. Noah.

“Noah? You really think he’d be a spy?” Maxwell looked gobsmacked. I knew it sounded farfetched but something about him seemed off. Very off.

“Of course, they didn’t even mention his title or anything. He has to be working for your parents, they need someone on the inside of the court so they can asses the situation. And he’ll probably approach me first if he sees me,” I said with confidently. I was so sure of this.

“Okay, let’s split up then, Hana’s dad is looking this way,” Maxwell rushed us. Liam and Hana walked away together, hand-in-hand like a real engaged couple, but when Liam passed me, he whispered that I looked beautiful. I blushed. He was cute.

I took a cup of tea from a waiter and watched Maxwell and Sarah dance like there was no tomorrow. I heard steps behind me and I already knew who this was. I smiled because he was right on time. A shame I didn’t bet any money on this. I pretended not to notice him until he was standing right next to me.

“Hello,” he smiled at me.

“Hi,” I was pretending to be shy so I put a strand of my hair behind my ear. His gaze was very instense like he wanted to suck the truth of me. _Two can play this game_ , I thought.

“I couldn’t stop staring at you. Why, you are a beauty,” he said with a smile on his bearded face.

“Thank you. You are quite the charmer,” I smiled back at him.

“So is that your new boyfriend? I’ve heard you two spending a lot of time together,” he pointed at Maxwell, who was jumping around like a bunny with Sarah. I giggled. If Hana’s parents would see them right now, they’d probably be mortified at how I was raising my daughter.

“You heard wrong,” I shook my head. Did he really think me and Maxwell could get together? Ew. I didn’t see him that way, at all. He was one of my best friends and I could never ever imagine him as anything else. Sometimes it felt like he was my younger brother, even though he was older than me by five years.

“Oh?”

“I’m currently healing from a past relationship but luckily I have friends and a daughter to pull me through,” I crossed my arms defensively. Noah smiled, looking at me. He was quiet for a while, searching for things to say.

“So there are no people warming your bed at night?” Noah crossed his arms right now. Was he asking what I was thinking? Seriously?

“No, I warm my own bed,” I looked at him.

“So is there a chance for someone else?” he sounded curious.

“If by someone else you mean yourself, you can try,” I flirted with him. He seemed to like that answer and we stood in a comfortable silence for a while. I tried to be as witty and clever as I could be and he seemed to enjoy that. It made me sick to my stomach that I even had to do that. I wasn’t here to impress anyone else but for appearances sake. And Hana’s parents had to think that I was slowly getting over Liam, so I had to act like I was a single and interested lady.

“I have two daughters myself,” Noah said ending the silence between us. We spent the rest of the evening talking about his daughters and he seemed to light up and put his own guard down. They were ten and six years old. He showed me their pictures and couldn’t stop raving about how great both of them were. A few years ago his life left him for another man and left the daughters in his care. He was devastated at first but now he only wanted someone to settle down with and find someone he could actually raise his daughters with. That did sound like a sensible plan, I knew how lonely raising a child could get. It’s one thing to share achievements of my child with my parents and relatives but a whole another thing when you share them with your significant other.

“So where are your daughters right now?”

“With my mother, she loves those two rascals,” he smiled. You could tell how much he was fond of them just by the way he talked about them. When the tea party finally ended, I could see that Noah was reluctant to leave my side. He didn’t even really talk to anyone else even though I nudged him to talk to every girl. He told me that he could see right through people right away and wasn’t interested in anyone else. I smiled, as if it was a compliment. I knew the real reasons but I pretended to be flattered.

“Could I have your number, Lady Ashley?” he asked suddenly and politely. I pretended to be in awe that he asked me that. I took his phone and put my number in it. He looked happy about it and when he parted, he gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. I even blushed. It was really unexpected. I guess I was an excellent actress.

“I didn’t like the way that man looked at you,” I read the text from Liam when Noah was out of my eyesight. I stared right at Liam who was still looking at his phone, standing next to his limo. I decided not to tell him about the kiss on the cheek. Besides, it wasn’t harmful to anyone, was it?

“I think he was nice,” I answered.

“Too bad he doesn’t know you’re mine, he would have to back off right away,” he answered. I chuckled. I was. And it was hard because only a selected few knew and I couldn’t flaunt him around.

“We just flirted for a bit, calm down. At least he doesn’t think I’m into you anymore,” I teased.

“You flirted?!”

“Please don’t flirt with him.”

“Please please.”

“Ashley?”

“Yes, my love?” I finally answered.

“I love you, but don’t flirt with Noah,” he wrote back.

I chuckled, put my phone in my purse and entered the limo. It was fun to tease the king.

_____________________________________________________________

We spent the next day in Shanghai packing and at the nature reserve. At the last minute, we arrived at the airport where everyone was already waiting us. Olivia was pretty angry since she had to talk to Noah and was even seated next to him and she found him very boring. Then we flew back to Cordonia and had a quick feast at the palace but we didn’t have much time. But I had to talk to Rachel – she had to know what was going on, she was texting me all the time but I didn’t feel comfortable talking to her in Shanghai. I plopped on my bed and called her.

“Hey! Finally! So tell me everything!” Rachel’s voice was eager. So I told her everything – about Hana’s strict parents, them sending Noah to probably spy on me, Olivia’s and Hana’s night out, Madeleine and Drake, Madeleine and Kiara. There was a lot to unpack there.

“I wouldn’t ever imagine that Madeleine was actually dating Kiara, now that’s a twist,” Rachel shook her head in surprise.

“But you had to be there, Madeleine seemed so passionate with Kiara. I would have never imagined her to have such passion, she always seemed to be such an ice queen,” I said.

“I know, I’m happy for her,” Rachel agreed.

“So what’s going on with you?” I asked and there was an awkward pause.

“I’m late,” she said slowly.

“Late? Late for what?”

“My period is late… Two weeks late,” she whispered. _WHAAAAAT._

“Oh, Rachel, baby, you didn’t?”

“I’m not a virgin anymore,” Rachel sighed.

“Have you taken the test yet?”

“No and I’m scared to,” she confessed.

“Of course, I was scared, too. Don’t tell me that..”

“The guy I slept with is the Duke of Carlsford? Well, it is, Ashley and I’m scared. Really scared,” she said quietly. I remembered how confused and scared I felt when I found out myself.

“I know you are. I’m sorry you’re so scared,” I whispered. She really was following my footsteps. My parents were probably going to be so angry. But I remembered how small and cute Sarah was, when she was a baby. It was all worth it. Everything was worth it for her.

“Baby or not, you’re going to do just great, Rachel,” I told her. I calmed her down and when I put down the phone, I looked over my sleeping five-year old. I knew everything had a way of sorting itself out. She promised to make an appointment at the clinic to find out for sure. We both knew that the pregnancy tests were unreliable – when I was pregnant with Sarah, the first test I took came out negative. Then I took one a few days later and what do you know – two thin lines appeared. I shook the memory out of my head, I still had things to do.

I still had to enroll Sarah in a school so I had to have a private meeting with Liam and Bertrand late at night because it was the only time all three of us were free to do so. We had the meeting behind closed doors and body guards behind them. It seemed too official for my taste.

“Since Sarah is not of school age yet, there are two private preschools that fit our criteria. Both of them are in the Capital but one offers online classes so even if the child is sick, he or she can log on online and be present for the class and doesn’t miss anything,” Bertrand siad confidently.

“Classes in pre-schools? I thought preschool is meant to be fun and games,” I smiled, looking at both of them.

“The school system differs here a bit. It’s simple really. You start school the year you turn six years old and you’re in the first grade. When you finally finish it, you’re eighteen and finish grade twelve, that simple. Pre-school prepares you for school so that you know how to write and read when you attend the first grade,” Liam smiled when he looked at me. I got nervous. I knew she learned letters in her pre-school in the USA but was that enough for Europe?

“What is it?” Liam touched my arm, sensing my distress.

“I’m just worried she might not know as much as the other kids do,” I sighed.

“She’s a very bright child, Ashley. I’m sure she’ll catch up fairly quickly,” Liam said in a calm voice.

“I can vouch for that, too. Lady Ashley you’ve raised a strong little girl who asks tough questions, I’m sure she’ll excel in school, too. She’s not afraid to ask if she doesn’t know something, that tells me that’s she’s ready,” Bertrand joined in. In the end they calmed me down and we decided on the school that offers online classes, so that we wouldn’t have to drive around the country every day. There were too many functions that the nobles had to attend and I wanted her with me at all times, I wasn’t trusting a nanny or anyone else to look after her, other than my best friends. Liam gave me a lot of paperwork to sign and when I finally did, it was very late. Bertrand had already left in a hurry, he wanted to get ready for tomorrow. I sighed when I heard Liam re-enter the room again.

“Hey, you okay?” he asked as he massaged my shoulders.

“She’s growing up too quickly. It feels like I haven’t had the time to savour this age when I’m already stressed out about what happens next,” I admitted. He kept rubbing my shoulders slowly. He touched one of my scars and I turned to look at him.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yes. I’m just… sick of this, sick of the pretending and being sad and missing you. I thought this would be easier. Way easier,” I confessed when I looked into his eyes.

“Me too,” he hugged me. We stood there for a while, with not a care in the world. Our lives were already so complicated, I didn’t even want to think about the celebration we had to have in House Amaranth tomorrow in his and Hana’s honor.

“Don’t leave,” he said as I stood up, ready to finally get to my bed and sleep away.

“One day I won’t,” I slowly walked out of the room.

___________________________________________________

The next day the motorcade took us to House Amaranth. When we arrived, it was dusk already but House Amaranth was decorated with illuminating twinkle lights. They made the whole mansion look cosy. Me and Sarah were in awe when we stepped into the ballroom. There were twinkle lights everywhere along with beautiful butterfly decorations.

“Hey Madeleine! Nice job with the ballroom, it’s beautiful!” I smiled at her. She nodded nervously back at me. Her arm was shaking and she looked very distressed.

“Yes, yes. It’s fun not only for the adults but also for the kids,” she answered but it looked like her head was elsewhere.

“What’s wrong?” I asked her when me and Sarah got closer.

“Why would anything be wrong? Everything is perfectly fine!” she answered in a huff.

“It looks like you were crying,” Sarah pointed out and ran to hug her. She looked shocked at the hug but still, she patted Sarah’s back and didn’t let go for a while. Other people were gathering fairly quickly and the ballroom was filled with people.

“Excuse me,” Madeleine wiped her eyes and walked to the microphone, getting ready.

“Something’s really wrong with her,” Sarah said. I nodded, something really was. Was it about Kiara? Maybe someone found out? Was someone blackmailing her? I couldn’t figure it out yet.

Liam and Hana finally entered the room, hand in hand, looking at each other. Everyone applauded, there were woo’s going in the crowd, children were happily running around them.

“We wanted to warmly welcome the King of Cordonia and his bride to our humble estate. We’re so glad that we get to finally get to host an event right here, in House Amaranth,” Madeleine started. I noticed a woman and a man behind her. They suddenly took a step forward and a light shone on both of them. The woman was smiling and seemed to enjoy the spotlight. She was in a sparkly silver dress, she did resemble Madeleine just a little bit. She was icy blonde, just like Madeleine but she had a twinkle in her eye. The man seemed much more serious and, honestly, grumpy. Even grumpier than Drake, I could tell he wasn’t enjoying this at all. He was also much older than the woman and he was pacing nervously.

“Yes, yes, we’re all so glad you’re here, let’s start the ball, shall we?” the man said. He seemed really not in the mood and tried to hurry everything along. The woman shook her head and took the microphone from him.

“Godfrey! Don’t mind him. I hope you all enjoy your stay here, let’s celebrate the engagement of our King and his dashing bride!” the woman said and people cheered.

“Wow, are they..”

“Madeleines parents? Yes.”

“They seem intense,” I sighed.

“They’ve always been intense. Well, Madeleine’s mother has always been kind of… attracted to me,” Maxwell sighed, too.

“What?” I chuckled.

“No, seriously! She always wants to dance with me, flirts with me,touches me and so on. And I’m afraid to say no,” he shrugged.

“Why? You’re a grown man, you can say no.”

“She’s the one who holds power in House Amaranth, since Godfrey is the Duke of Karlington. I don’t want to piss her off. But she’s also a big gossip, that’s where I learn my news from sometimes, so if I’d say no, she would probably get offended,” Maxwell admitted.

“But still, isn’t she married? Why is she flirting with you when she has a husband?”

“Ashley, it’s a political marriage. Both of them have completely different viewpoints and they argue on almost everything they are presented with. Any topic.”

“Even Madeleine?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Especially Madeleine,” he nodded. I sighed. Again – nobility ruining the lives of their children. And for what? Madeleine seemed very robotic to me, like she felt the need to be as perfect as she could be. She resembled Hana a lot, but Hana had much more empathy than she did.

I spent most of the party with Sarah and Maxwell, dancing and running around the dancefloor. Sarah joined the other kids while me and Maxwell took a breather. I felt a pair of eyes on me and when I slowly turned my head, I realized it was Noah. I was hoping it to be Liam and was, honestly, a little disappointed. Liam already explained that he tried not to look at me that much during events so that wouldn’t raise suspicion since everyone was eyeing him. I understood that but still, I wanted something from him, to know he was looking just for a second. These last two parties, the only person actually eyeing me was Noah. Noah finally went up to me and spoke briefly until Drake pulled me out of the conversation.

“Hey!” I said.

“I know, I know, you’re doing a great job acting like Liam did hurt you and that you’re trying to be over him and all but can we focus on the bigger picture?” Drake whispered.

“What bigger picture?”

“Madeleine has some information,” Drake pulled my hand towards the ballroom’s exit. I blindly followed him outside. Madeleine was standing there in the freezing cold.

“I thought you’d bring Liam,” Madaleine answered in a cold tone.

“C’mon Maddy. She was the easiest person to help slip out of that party. Now, please, tell her,” he said. _Maddy?_

“Okay, well, here it goes. I asked for Drake’s help. And in exchange he asked me a favor and I fulfilled my end of the bargain,” she took some photos out of her tiny clutch bag and gave them to me. As I looked at them up close, I realized that they were pictures of Tariq, arriving in and out of aiports.

“What’s this?” I looked shocked.

“My family owns a lot of the security tech all around the airports of the world, so I called in for some favors. Tariq has been seen in a lot of states, he jumps around them quite often,” she smiled at me. I was nervous to say anything else to Madeleine and eyed her carefully. She laughed.

“Oh, seriously, Ashley? I’ve known about your plan a while ago,” she shook her head.

“But how?” as I asked the question, I realized the answer and looked straight at Drake.

“Yes, yes, it was me, but we seriously needed help. And she just asked for a small favor,” Drake sighed in frustration.

“What favor?”

“Drake…” Madeleine started but Drake shook his head.

“Ashley was with me, she saw you and Kiara, too.”

When Drake said the words, Madeleine’s face went blank, her eyes were sad, she looked hurt. She looked like a child that had their future crushed.

“Madeleine, why are you hiding your relationship?” I asked quietly. She bit her lip nervously.

“I… I just.. My parents can’t find out,” she finally muttered out the words.

“But why?”

“Ashley, why do you think? They’re homophobes. They want me to marry a man, have his baby and continue the legacy of House Amaranth, just like my mother and her mother did before her.”

“Did they say that to you?”

“Of course. Actually, my father did. When I told him that I didn’t like men, he really didn’t care. He got very angry and told me that he’d destroy my life if I decided to destroy his. But what me and Kiara have… it’s special. So special, I can’t have anyone ruining it,” she sighed. I wanted to wrap my hands around her and tell her it’s okay. That she’s accepted for who she is but I knew it wouldn’t help. Not coming from me.

“That’s why you needed Drake’s help?”

“Yes, he was pretending to be interested in me and I’ve been flirting with other men in court, just so my father would lay off me. He was watching me the whole night, he wants me to be engaged, too, at the end of this tour,” she admitted with a sigh.

“Oh, so Olivia has nothing to be worried about,” I sighed in relief.

“Of course not! But she also can’t know the truth. She has to think me and Drake also have a thing, so that the reporters keep writing about us and my father sees it. He reads everything that has my name on it, he has to think I decided to keep my word. Only a handful of people know and I was reluctant to tell you, too,” she confessed. I nodded. It sounded pretty scary.

“So what happens at the end of the social season? You get engaged to someone you barely know? “

“I’ll figure it out,” Madeleine said, sounding determinant as ever. I took another look at the photos of Tariq. How much could one guy travel?

“Drake, did you know all along?” I turned to him. He shrugged it off.

“Oh, there you are,” I heard Olivia’s voice behind me. As she walked further and noticed Drake and Madeleine, she shut up and walked past us.

“Olivia!” I ran after her. She looked at me angrily.

“Olivia, did you find anything?” I asked her and she seemed to calm down and nodded. She handed me a security badge with a woman’s photo on the back.

“What’s this?” I asked, looking at the woman on the picture. Her hair was black, up in a ponytail. She was wearing a red suit jacket and she looked like someone very important.

“My people found this while searching Applewood for clues, she’s probably the photographer who took that damned picture you received the night before the Coronation,” Olivia said. I looked at the woman again. Was she the blackmailer, too? How dare she?


	25. The First

As the party started to wind down, Olivia walked up next to me.

“The night isn’t over yet,” she whispered in my ear and winked at me. I raised my eyebrow at her. What did this mean? Did she have something planned?

“Wha-”

“Can I accompany you and Sarah to your room?” Noah asked across the ballroom so that everyone could hear. I saw some journalists turning their heads and snapping pictures of him coming closer to us. I rolled my eyes at them. They were trying to romance me up with Noah ever since he arrived. All the newest magazines called us a “secret power couple” and have tried to match us up. _Oh, if they only knew the truth…_

“Actually, we have plans,” Olivia smirked at him. Noah ignored her and looked straight at me. His eyes were dark and pleading. He didn’t look like a man who was used to rejection as he stood there and waited for my answer.

“Sorry, we have plans,” I smiled at him. I saw something change in his eyes and he shook his head.

“It’s okay, I should’ve known that you’re not very easy to court,” he chuckled. He kissed my hand goodbye and I could feel his hot breath on me. It bothered me a little because he seemed really into the idea that we could be together. I wanted to tell him that it won’t work out. I really did, but he didn’t seem like the person to bow down so easily. I didn’t want to give him any ideas but I really needed the press to keep writing about me and Noah, so that it’d take the suspicion off me from Hana’s parents. They had to be convinced that I wasn’t into Liam at all. I fluttered my eyebrows, as if pretending to be into it. He left with a smile on his face. Olivia groaned at me.

“What was that? He flirted with you and you kind of flirted back,” she hissed quietly.

“Olivia, I need him. I need the press to think we’re into each other, for our sake,” I hissed back at her. She sighed.

“Well, act a little less interested, otherwise he may try to kiss you,” she hissed again.

“He won’t.”

“How are you so sure?”

“Trust me, he probably doesn’t even like me. Hana’s parents sent him to spy on me, that’s all. Now, where are we going?” I asked, taking a last glance at the beautifully decorated ballroom. I spotted Sarah leaving with Maxwell and looked at Olivia.

“It’s all arranged, now follow me,” she said, taking my hand quickly. We quickly ran to the hallway and up the stairs, where our bedrooms were. She pushed me into the shadow of a column.

“Hey!”

“Shut up!” she said and I hear her greeting someone. As I listened, she kept talking some gibberish I couldn’t understand. Then I heard some keys jiggling. After a silent moment, I felt her hand grab me and give me a shiny key.

“Now you’ll run upstairs. If I’ll see anyone going your way, I’ll distract them, the bedrooms are numbered upstairs, open the 34th room. What are you standing around for? Go! Go!” Olivia said strictly and I just ran, my heels clicking against the tiles of the floor.

I kept glancing back at Olivia who was closely behind, ready to distract anyone who dared to come closer. The upstairs hallway was empty, so I quickly found room 34 and opened the door with the key. The room was empty when I entered. I quickly shut the door and turned on the lights. The room seemed to be recently renovated and painted baby blue. I stood there for a while until I finally decided to look in the huge wardrobe that was there. I opened the door of the wardrobe and looked at all the clothes there. There wasn’t much in there, just some underwear, socks, shoes and a few suits. As I looked through them, I noticed a royal emblem on one of them. Was this Liam’s room? I looked around. It sure seemed that way. But wasn’t he supposed to share the room with Hana? I took a quick glance around. None of Hana’s stuff was here, or her clothes. So the engaged couple didn’t share a room? Strange. I heard the door of the room open, so I quickly shut his wardrobe door, mortified that Liam would think I was snooping.

“Hey beautiful,” he smiled at me and locked the door behind me.

“Did you arrange for all of this?” I smiled at him. He nodded and took a step closer. I ran into his arms and he held me for a while. I felt so safe and warm in his arms. He smelled nice and I couldn’t help but feel happy that he made time for us, just us. I had started to feel a little disconnected from him since everything went on. I was used to him being there and didn’t realize how little time we actually would be spending together after him proposing to Hana…

“In between all the meetings and engagement stuff, I couldn’t stop thinking about you. And how little time we actually got to spend together,” he sighed.

“I know. It’s hard being in a secret relationship,” I agreed.

“Luckily, we have the best people on our side, always happy to babysit,” Liam grinned and slowly kissed me. I kissed him back passionately. I wanted to feel him around me, his arms, all around my body. I needed to feel wanted by him. He pulled me in closer and couldn’t stop kissing me. When our lips parted, we both were out of breath and I knew I had to ask.

“Doesn’t Hana stay here, too?” I asked as we both sat down on his bed, looking at each other.

“No, usually the engaged couple doesn’t. They can, if they want to but it’s frowned upon,” he smiled.

“Will we stay in seperate rooms?”

“If you want to,” he smiled, sincerely. I looked into his kind eyes and they were full of love. I couldn’t stop smiling because I loved him, too.

“I don’t,” I shook my head and he laughed.

“Then let the people frown. I don’t care, if I’m in it with you,” he caressed my hand. I felt a little crazy. Crazy in love. I’ve known this man for three months and we were talking about marriage already. Paul didn’t even want to get married to me, even when we found out I was pregnant. It was crazy to me how different both of them were. Liam didn’t want to change me nor I felt like I had to fit a certain type of a person to be with him. He always made me feel safe and my feelings were validated. And it felt scary. What if this wasn’t real and he’d change, just like Paul did?

“What is it?” Liam asked and he seemed concerned. Of course, he did, he was actually a nice guy and I was being overdramatic, as always.

“Nothing, it’s nothing, just silly thoughts,” I smiled at him.

“I want to know, tell me,” he said seriously.

“Why?”

“It seems like you’re in distress and I want to know what’s wrong. I really cherish you, Ashley,” the way he said my name made me shiver. I smiled and decided to tell him everything. And I meant everything. I told him about how Paul and Daniel made me feel back in New York and that I wasn’t worthy of anything. About how Tariq made me feel, which we didn’t really talk about before, because I was afraid. How terrified I was. I told him every little concern, every little detail, every little worry that made me feel uneasy – Hana’s parents, the fact that we’ve never had sex yet, how Noah seemed to be way into the whole “courting thing”, my sister maybe being pregnant at 17, just like I was… Hours must have passed and he just sat there, quietly, listening, not interrupting or anything. When I was finished, he took me onto his lap and kissed me on the cheek.

“Is that all you have to say after hours of going on?” I giggled.

“It wasn’t hours, Ashley, more like half an hour, but you sure do talk fast when you’re worried,” he smiled and hugged me tighter. _WHAT_. I was sure that I had gone on for hours on end.

“But I get it. I’m worried about the future as much as you are, but all in all, I want to see Tariq behind bars with the person behind this whole mess, be married to you, to be a family with Sarah and see everyone happy,” he smiled.

“That sounds like a great happy ending,” I agreed.

“Maxwell with Hana, Olivia with…”

“Drake!” I continued.

“‘I’m quite sure he’s dating Madeleine, currently. At least, that’s what’s been speculated, I haven’t asked him upright yet, but we’ll see,” Liam said and it made me laugh. He totally didn’t know the latest drama going on with his friends because he was so busy.

“What?”

“I know more than you do,” I sang the words in a little song.

“Oh?”

“Drake’s Madeleine’s “beard”. All of the guys in court are, she wants the attention of everyone. She’s actually dating.. Kiara,” I said and looked at him expectantly. He didn’t disappoint. His shocked expression was hilarious.

“You’re joking!”

“Nope, Madeleine told me that herself. Also, I saw them kissing in Shanghai,” I giggled as I told the whole story of what I knew. Liam still seemed surprised. He really should get up to date to the newest happenings in Cordonia. At least I was his news source, currently.

After I teased him a little about knowing much more about his friends than he did, there was a moment of silence in between us. A moment where we both looked into each others eyes and I realized I wanted him. He made me feel so safe and confident, why shouldn’t we do this? I was a little worried because Paul was the only person I actually had sex with and I always felt uncomfortable. I didn’t want to feel that way with Liam. He smiled at me and I pressed my lips against his. We kissed as if we were hungry and about to devour each other. I felt breathless but I wanted more and more. He pressed me closer to him and for a while all we did was kiss. It was the best damn makeout session I’ve ever had. Then he laid me down on the bed, slowly and looked into my eyes.

“Do you really want to do this?” Liam asked quietly. I knew I did but it felt so good that he asked. I knew that if I did say no, he’d understand. He wouldn’t lay a finger on me unless I told him it was okay to do so. That turned me on ever more, knowing that he was a real gentleman.

“I do,” I smirked at him. He made me stand up and slowly helped me get out of my dress and my bra, I was standing there, with my bare breasts and he looked at me for a long while, as if he was taking in the sight. I didn’t feel very comfortable with my body and tried to squirm away but he shook his head. I felt very shy but his words made me feel warm.

“You’re beautiful, Ashley,” he said and laid me down on the bed again. He kissed me again and again, then moved onto kissing my chin, my neck and when he moved to my chest area, he was very carefully kissing me. As if he was afraid to break me. He cupped one of my breasts with his hands and kissed the other. I moaned because he did it so sensually. I never thought that my breasts were _this_ sensitive. He moved along my stomach, leaving a trail of kisses behind him. I was getting a little nervous when I realized where Liam was heading. Paul never did that and I never knew how it would feel for me, but I did fantasize about it a lot.

When I felt Liam’s tongue inside of me, I couldn’t help but moan loudly with pleasure, holding his head with my hands. I couldn’t control myself, it felt different than anything I’ve ever felt. I panted heavily and started slowly moving myself towards him. When I did, I suddenly felt a wave of pleasure engulfing me. His tongue was working wonders, he was circling his tongue all around me and I felt another wave of pleasure. I couldn’t stop moaning and after a quick while, I couldn’t stop myself from screaming his name out loud. I held onto his strong arms and let myself explode right then and then. He slowly stood up and smiled at me.

“God, you’re amazing,” he whispered quietly and walked to his wardrobe. He opened it and was looking for something inside it.

 _What was he looking for in there?_ _Was it a sex toy?_ When he finally turned around, he was grinning. I noticed something in his hands. When Liam came closer to me, I noticed it was a brown belt. He quickly used it to tie me to his bedpost. By the looks of it, he had done this before. _Oh, he was kinky_ , I thought. I was nervous but I knew I was safe in his arms.

“Shall we continue?” he asked as he cocked his head to the right. I nodded.

__________________________________________________________________

“Good morning, love,” Liam’s voice woke me up.

“Mmmm,” I said, trying not to wake up. It was way too early for me.

“We have the barn raising today,” Liam said and nudged me. I tried to swat him away, but without success. When he started tickling me, I started screaming and gave up.

“No tickling!” I said grumpily and that only made Liam laugh more. He kissed my forehead. I took a quick shower and Olivia escorted me to my room quickly so that I’d be there unnoticed. Sarah was already there, standing in jean shorts, a cowboy hat with cowboy boots and a red checkered t-shirt.

Maxwell was grinning with her.

“Let me guess, I get a matching set?” I pointed at Sarah’s clothes and Maxwell nodded, excitedly.

“Where did you get all of this?” I asked and quickly ran to the bathroom for an outfit change.

“Anita sent it over a week ago, she thought that someday you’d like something comfortable.”

“I’m so thankful for her,” I said, while buttoning my shirt. After a minute or two, I stepped out and Sarah nodded at my outfit.

“I love matching with you, mommy!” she said and hugged my leg. I pulled her up for a hug. She suddenly seemed like such a big girl.

“I love it, too!”

“I missed you,” she whispered into my ear when hugging me.

“I missed you sooo much more. Did you have fun?”

“Yes! Maxwell and Hana showed me Pokemon Games on the T-Box and we had poptarts and…” as Sarah was talking, Maxwell suddenly started a coughing fit.

“It’s okay, Maxwell, you can babysit however you see fit, I won’t judge,” I smiled at him.

“Time to go, ladies and.. Maxwell,” Bertrand said, walking into the room. We followed him outside. The press was there – they seemed eager to ask their questions. I smiled at them but I felt nervous inside.

“Lady Ashley, how does it feel to be betrayed by your best friend?”

“Are you angry at King Liam?”

“Are you still friends with Lady Hana?”

“Do you support the wedding?”

“What’s Drake’s role in all of this?”

I froze. I couldn’t believe that people would ask these kinds of questions. And that they cared that much. I tried to calm myself down and when I turned to answer, a man in an exquisite blue tuxedo came to my rescue.

“You should all be ashamed of asking such personal questions to this young lady here. Hasn’t she been through enough? You’ll get your chance to ask her questions at the barn raising but I ask of you to rethink the ridiculous questions you’ve just asked her. Think of yourselves in her position,” he adjusted his glasses. Everyone looked stunned and he walked to the limo with me and Sarah.

I was very happy and confused by the rescue, so I raised my eyebrow. Something seemed off about him.

“Are you okay, Ashley?” Maxwell asked as we all entered the limo.

“The press swarmed us like… like…” Bertrand was speechless.

“Like they were hunters and we were the prey. It was oddly unsettling,” Maxwell sighed.

“I froze up but all in all it was fine because I was saved by him,” I pointed at the man in the blue tuxedo again who had sat down with us in the limo.

“Who are you?” Sarah crossed her arms as she looked at him.

“The name’s Justin. And it looks like I arrived Just-In-Time!” he flashed his smile towards Sarah who still eyed him suspiciously. As did I, but I was thankful for the save.

“Justin is a PR agent and has agreed to work with us for a symbolic paycheck, ” Bertrand said stricly.

“Symbolic meaning that we can’t pay him much, but he’ll be managing your image, Ashley,” Maxwell added. I looked at both of the brothers. They rarely agreed on anything so I liked where this was going – both of them seemed to approve of Justin.

“I’m also working my own angles here, boys. I’ll get to connect and mingle with the noble families, I probably won’t have any good opportunities like this in the very near future,” he smiled at all of us.

“That means that he’ll get to party with the nobles,” Maxwell added.

“Maxwell!” Bertrand looked at him angrily.

“That’s okay, Bertrand, I am looking forward to what happens next,” Justin said, narrowing his eyes at me. I felt a little uncomfortable but I did enjoy his help so I couldn’t say no to him. Or the brothers.

“So what do you do?” Sarah asked, looking at him.

“I’ll manage your mother’s reputation. I’ll help her talk to the press so that they will write nice stuff about her and she won’t be afraid to say anything,” Justin explained.

“So you’ll keep mommy safe?”

“I will,” he nodded and it seemed like that softened Sarah up. She nodded at him.

“She needs your help,” Sarah said and I couldn’t help but laugh. Did she really say that just now?

“I’ll be here,” Justin eyed me carefully.

We went through the gameplan a few times until I perfected it. Justin made me realize that the press was only after one thing – they wanted me to slip up or to say something scandalous about me, Liam or Hana and I couldn’t do that – it would ruin everything. I had to pretend to be very happy for the couple and to pretend that Noah was more on my wavelength. I nodded, realizing that lying was one thing – but pretending to like Noah? After the night I spent with Liam, I knew this was going to be the hardest part of them all.

“Showtime,” Justin whispered as he gently nudged me out of the limo. I took Sarah by the hand and as we were walking up, we were swarmed by the press again. I felt stuck so I looked around to look for Justin.

“Lady Ashley, could we just ask you something?” a reporter asked, grinning at me. He looked overly confident, like he had me trapped.

“Lady Ashley would like to put out a statement,” I heard Justin’s voice behind me. He nodded at me. I nodded back and turned to the press. _I know this, I just perfected this_ , I kept repeating to myself in my head. The reporters and microphones kept coming. I took a deep breath and smiled at everyone.

“I love Cordonia, I’ve come to think of it more of home. When I was in New York, I missed Cordonia a lot and that’s saying something, since I’ve always thought of myself as the New York girl. I love this country so much so that I even enrolled Sarah into a school right here. I love the fact that I get to raise her here, surrounded by such kind and caring people. I’ve also developed some .. romantic feelings towards someone here and I’d like to explore that further. Thank you, no further comments,” I smiled at all of them. The press cheered and clapped so I looked at Noah, who was staring right at me and I winked. The press immeadiately noticed this and turned to him. He looked flustered and didn’t answer any questions. I sighed.

“Good work. The wink at the end was perfect, the press was thrown off the trail absolutely,” Justin patted my back and smiled at me. I felt like I was betraying Liam so I didn’t feel like it was a job well done at all. Especially not after last night. After Olivia’s comments yesterday, I also felt bad for Noah. Was he really flirting with me like that? I thought he was after me because he needed information for Hana’s parents… I shook my head. _No, he was here for Hana’s parents, absolutely,_ I convinced myself and I walked right past him, with Sarah by my side.

“Excuse us, Lady Ashley has a barn to build,” Justin said as he was escorting us away from the press and further to where all the nobles were standing. Well, all the nobles and Drake.

“So how do we do this?” Madeleine asked, looking disinterested in the conversation. Justin excused himself and went on to mingle with the press. I knew Noah was right next to us because I could feel his heavy steps.

“Does anyone have any experience in barn raising?” he lifted an eyebrow at all of us. Only Drake stepped forward. So he and Drake looked at the blueprints, while all of us walked around aimlessly waiting to be given a task to do. I saw Liam looking at me and I couldn’t help but smile at him back. _Finally!_

After a while me and Sarah were tasked with carrying the smaller beams around and that’s what we did. When the barn was arranged, Noah and Drake, with Maxwell’s help put in the windows while Liam, Hana, Penelope and Kiara made sure everything was sturdy. Rashad and Neville kept walking around the barn, making sure we didn’t forget anything. Madeleine seemed absent-minded and she just walked around, knocking on wood and casually flirting with either Neville or Rashad, making sure that the press were on her. And they were. Madeleine knew just how to work everything to her advantage, didn’t she? Me and Sarah then helped everyone else paint the barn, after it was determined to be good enough. When it was finally finished, we all looked at the proud work we did.

“Mommy, this wasn’t too bad!” Sarah excitedly said. I nodded. It was kinda exciting to see what we all could do if we worked as a team.

“There’s a pool not to far from here, where we could go relax,” Maxwell suggested, after we all recieved the praise on the beautiful barn from the press.

“A pool?” Sarah’s eyes were glowing. She loved swimming and anything to do with water. I was the polar opposite – I couldn’t even swim while she couldn’t wait to be in water.

“What do you say, Ashley?” Hana asked loudly. Everyone was staring right at me. Could I even say no? I nodded and Sarah jumped around excitedly. We all got into our limos and drove to the pool. I wasn’t expecting anything fancy but I was wrong. Of course, if Maxwell suggested the idea, it would be fancy. It was the most glamorous pool I had ever seen, it had a built in spa, too, of course. Madeleine, Kiara and Penelope decided to go there while the rest of us went by the pool. I would have loved to relax in the spa, too, but I couldn’t just leave everyone there.

I didn’t have a bathing suit with me, but of course, this fancy pool space provided bathing suits for every size. And every color. I picked out a black strapless bikini top and a matching bottom. We picked a pink flowery bathing suit for Sarah and when we walked out, we were stopped by Noah, who was looking at every inch of my body and made me feel a little uncomfortable.

“Can we talk privately?” he asked as he looked at Sarah and I nodded. I deserved this, for flirting with him in front of the camera. I asked Olivia to look over her and she took Sarah to the kiddy pool, without even a hint of hesitation.

Then I felt his hand pull my arm. He pulled me into the men’s bathroom, said how much he liked me back and that he thought we’d make a great couple and what a great mother I would be to his daughters. _Oh no, oh no, you got yourself into this mess._ I looked up at him nervously. I was quiet for a moment, trying to find the right words to explain what happened today but there he was – moving his head slowly towards mine. He was about to kiss me and I was about to scream. Why was this happening to me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this was a very busy week for me but I can't wait to show you what happens next! I hope you're as excited as I am! :)


	26. The Jailbird wants to sing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning - there is mention of rape/molestation at the end of the chapter, reader discretion is advised. Thank you!

“Stop! Stoooop!” I said when I felt his beard touch my chin. He looked confused and he raised an eyebrow.

“Sorry, I thought this was something that you wanted. You winked at ME, Ashley,” he said, stepping away. He sounded really offended. I sighed. _How will I get out of this one?_

“No, I’m the one who should be sorry. I do like you Noah, but I .. I don’t feel ready to start anything yet, it’s way too soon, ” I sighed. I was lying through my teeth and hoping that I was a good enough liar.

“But you said..”

“Yes, I did, but that was just to throw the press off me. They were hounding me about Hana and Liam and to be honest, it does still hurt, a bit. I just want to make sure I’m going into this with a clean slate,” I smiled at him, trying to sound as sincere as I could. It wasn’t easy, especially since he actually looked hurt. Noah shook his head and walked off.

“Whatever. I thought we had something but apparently I’m not enough,” he said and opened the bathroom door. He looked at me sadly and then just walked off. I felt so bad. _So so so bad._

“Noah!” I shouted after him as he walked away. Olivia was next to me in an instant.

“Need me to bring him back? I can do it really fast.”

“No.. he tried to kiss me and I told him that it was too soon,” I sighed.

“You don’t waste time,” she laughed and nudged me. I looked at her, annoyed. She smiled so innocently that I tried to resist her but couldn’t, she made me smile, too.

“Besides, who needs him?”

“He might be a spy for Hana’s parents, you know,” I sighed.

“You’ll be okay,” Olivia hugged my shoulders.

“You think so?”

“I know so. We’ll figure it out, now let’s plan for tomorrow, shall we?” she turned me around and to where Bertrand was standing and waving.

_______________________________

The next day we were having a country picnic to “send off” the newly wed couple on their tour. But me, Bertrand, Olivia and the others were using this as an opportunity to trap the photographer and make her tell us everything she knows about that fateful night and to explain why she was there. And we had every step planned already – we found out the name and email address of the photographer and arranged for her to be our “private” photographer for the day. Drake, Olivia and Bertrand were “getting ready” with us and Drake even decided to put on a navy dress shirt, just this once he looked a _little_ different.

“Now this is an occasion,” Olivia said, while checking out Drake. Her voice was bitter and I really wanted to tell her everything that WAS going on, but it wasn’t my secret to tell. I was just hoping that the game of charades would end very soon. I didn’t know how much I could take of this, especially since it was hurting Olivia. I really wanted to confess then and there but I didn’t. Madeleine was very paranoid about who knew about it and she asked every day if I had told anyone.

“We hired a photographer, might as well get some nice pictures out of it,” he shrugged.

“Oh seriously? All it takes is one phone call and Madeleine can have a full blown photoshoot for you and your new shirt. We’re here to make the photographer TALK not swoon over you,” Olivia rolled her eyes. Drake didn’t say anything and the energy in the room was awkward. I didn’t know what to say and what could I really say? Bertrand stood there, checking his charts and acting like he was very busy. I joined in and we both nodded and pointed at the charts,

When the photographer walked in the dressing room with Maxwell, I immeadiately recognized her – she was wearing much more makeup and her hair was let loose, but she had that self assured smirk that gave her away. Bertrand greeted her, he lead her towards me and Sarah. We smiled at her sweetly.

“I love the matching vibe going on here!” she smiled and pointed at mine and Sarah’s matching flowery dresses. Sarah curtsied and said thank you. The woman looked straight at me with an icy stare. I did the same.

“Alana Porto,” she introduced herself and extended her hand.

“Lady Ashley Fabiano,” I replied and shook her hand.

“So what kind of shots did you have in mind? ”

“We’d just like some nice pictures, photographer’s choice,” Bertrand quickly added.

“But I’d like to know the style, the…” Alana started objecting but Bertrand shook his head.

“You have full creative freedom!” he said, trying to sound ecstatic.

“Buuttt…”

“No more time to waste, go set up your equipment at once!” Bertrand demanded. The woman was confused but she didn’t question it. Once she was fully set up, me and Sarah posed for a few pictures. We got Drake and Olivia to join in, each of them on the other side just so Olivia wouldn’t snipe at Drake. Maxwell stood next to the photographer, cheering us on and commenting on our poses.

“Sarah, pose like this,” he put one hand on his hip and Sarah obeyed. Alana kept taking pictures. By her facial expression, I’d say she’d love to roll her eyes but decided against it. She kept a straight face throughout this.

“Drake and Olivia, you two should crack a smile!” Maxwell commented again.

“Shut up,” Drake said and smiled.

“We know how to pose for pictures,” Olivia smiled through her teeth.

Maxwell shook his head.

“You’re lucky you don’t see what I do,” he said and exhaled loudly. Olivia’s face contorted and she looked pissed off.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Maxwell, are you trying to ruin this?” Drake asked angrily. Bertrand stepped in quickly.

“The party’s starting, let’s go outside and you can take great shots outside,” Bertrand ushered us all and made Alana take her portable camera to take shots outside. She exhaled but obeyed. I let Sarah run off to play with the other kids while I stayed a little in the back so that I could walk outside with Alana. I checked her out carefully. Was she really Tariq’s accomplice? She didn’t look malicious, not at all. Rather, busy and annoyed. You could feel Tariq being shady, there was just something about him and how he talked to people that made everyone uncomfortable but this woman didn’t seem like him at all. Cold and distant, yes. But was she really capable of being THAT cold and not caring about ruining people’s lives?

When we finally got outside into the palace’s garden, former king Constantine was making his speech and talking about Liam. I looked straight at him. Was he also involved and if so, what would he gain from this? I couldn’t wrap my head around this whole ordeal, I was still in shock that someone wanted to hurt ME. Yes, I wasn’t born in nobility but did that mean that I wasn’t worthy of love?

“Hey,” I heard Drake’s voice behind me.

“Hey,” I smiled at him.

“This is crazy, isn’t it?” he asked and I nodded. It was crazy. We were so close to the truth, I could almost feel it. It’s within our grasp, I just knew it.

“We’re almost there,” I whispered quietly.

“You don’t seem very happy about it.”

“I’m not, I’m very scared, actually,” I confessed. Drake’s eyes widened.

“Of what?”

“I’m afraid of finding out what actually happened because I think it might hurt a lot of people, including Liam,” I sighed. And it was true. What if it was Constantine? Wouldn’t Liam take his father’s side? He was very loyal. He was a decent person but he was loyal and I was scared of his reaction. Yes, I loved him but realistically, I’ve known him for months while his father will always remain his father. Who wouldn’t be scared?

“It’s going to be okay,” Drake smiled at me. I felt miserable so I took a step closer and hugged him tight. He hugged me back and we stood there for quite a while. I started to sob a little but I was hoping that no one would notice, I buried my face in Drake’s navy shirt. I heard Regina’s voice, so it was time for her to make her speech. I sighed and Drake slowly released me. I looked at his shirt – it wasn’t too wet, so it was okay.

“Fabiano?”

“Yes?”

“Liam will always be on your side, so you have nothing to worry about. But you can always cry on my shoulder, if you need the support. But if it’s Liam you’re worried about – you shouldn’t be, not really,” he said quietly.

“How do you know? That Liam will always be on my side?” a quiet sob escaped my mouth. I quickly looked at the camera on my phone to see if my makeup was running. It wasn’t, I sighed in relief.

“He’s always been on my side and I’ve done some pretty shady things. You have nothing to worry about. Believe me. Even if it turns out to be the worst,” Drake pointed at Liam’s father, who was standing next to Liam, proudly smiling.

“You suspect him, too?” I widened my eyes.

“No one stands to gain more than he does, we just need proof so that Liam can open his eyes, too,” Drake nodded. I didn’t know how to feel. On one hand, it felt good that Drake supported my theory but on the other hand – if it was true, what did it mean for me and Liam? That our love was doomed and we could never be together because his father disapproved? What would happen to his father since Liam is the current king? There were too many questions, so I thought not to think about it. I chatted with Drake for a bit until Madeleine came by.

“Drake! You’re supposed to be seen and photographed with me not her!” she sounded pissed.

“Photographed?” I raised an eyebrow at her.

“Yeah, that woman over there was taking so many pictures of you, I don’t wanna know where they will end up since you’re supposed to be with ME,” she scolded us both.

“Sorry, we were just talking,” Drake sighed.

“My parents will be here any second, they should see me surrounded by interesting men. The only man that was surrounding me was that obsessive Noah, asking me silly questions and being so annoying, you’re much better company,” Madeleine groaned.

“What did Noah ask?” I suddenly bursted out. It was usually so easy to spot where Noah was but I didn’t see him the whole party which seemed strange for me.

“Oh, Lady Ashley, I don’t remember, some things about every suitor. They were very dull and I didn’t even answer most of the questions,” she rolled her eyes.

“You just like the fact that I’m quiet,” Drake smirked.

“Of course, and you listen to my problems about Kiara. It’s not like I can vent to Rashad or Neville,” Madeleine smiled at him.

“Oh, there’s the woman who was taking pictures of you two. Now, see you later, Lady Ashley,” Madeleine pointed straight at Alana who was taking pictures of nearby nobles. She and Drake walked quickly away and I kept staring at Alana, hoping she’d notice. She didn’t. So I slowly walked up to her.

“Can I take a quick look of the photos you’ve been taking?” I asked and I accidentally frightened her. She turned around and smiled at me.

“No, sorry. You can take a look after I’m done with them, though,” she smiled sweetly at me.

“But I really want to take a look right now,” I was annoyed.

“I only give my clients the finished work,” she sounded even more annoyed at me. I walked behind her and quickly took the camera into my own hands. She turned around, looking angrily at me.

“Hey! Give that back!”

“No, I’d like to take a look, aaaaand, what’s this? Have you been spying on me?” I quickly found the pictures of me and Drake in the gallery of the camera. There were dozens of us hugging, looking at each other, me sobbing on his shoulder. If someone else caught wind of this, they’d think that there was something going on between us. Alana shrugged.

“It’s my job to observe and take pictures, so what?”

“ _So what_?” I was getting very annoyed at this lady.

“I know you were the one who took a picture with me and Tariq,” I looked straight into her eyes, waiting for a reaction. Her eyes widened in horror.

“How did you…?”

“Oh, I know things and it’d be nice if you’d tell me something more. I know Tariq wasn’t working alone, who else was involved?” I put one hand on my hip. Alana didn’t answer right away, it looked like she was mulling the answer in her head and figuring out her next step.

“Could we talk in private? We’re far too open for me to talk about it. There’s so many people who can overhear,” she finally said and I nodded, so we slowly started walking away. I gave her the camera back and once I actually did, she bolted. I was in shock – seriously?! I didn’t need this, not right now. _Fuck, fuck, fuck, she’s getting away._ I sighed and ran after her but she got a good headstart on me. I kept running as fast as I could but I was out of breath shortly. I could still see a glimpse of Alana and boy, she was fast. It was probably from the adrenaline of being almost caught. I groaned. Why was this happening to me, right now?

“You really should be way more trained for this, she’s just a photographer for God’s sake,” I heard Olivia’s voice next to me. She flew just past me and I gasped. Wow. That girl was fast, after a few moments, she was by Alana’s side and she tripped her, so she fell. When I finally caught up, Alana was already in handcuffs next to Olivia.

“Olivia, do you just randomly have handcuffs on you on any time?” I gasped.

“Of course, you never know when you’ll use them! I also have a few backup swords,” she smiled at me.

“You can’t do this to me, you’re not law enforcement, I know my rights,” Alana interrupted us and looked defiant.

“Oh, sweetheart, don’t you know by now? I don’t care, not at all,” Olivia smiled at her and dialled a number on her phone. She took a few steps away, quickly talked to someone on the phone and walked back with a smile.

“We’ll have the situation sorted in a few minutes,” Olivia smiled.

“I knew this job was too good to be true,” Alana said angrily.

“Why do criminals always return for more? I never understood that,” Olivia sighed and crossed her arms. I couldn’t stop staring at what Olivia did. Was she a superwoman? She literally ran in high heels after a woman who was wearing loafers and pinned her down in such a short time… I was in awe of her. It was so strange, I came into the competition hating her and now I was in awe of her. _People really can surprise you_ , I thought.

After a few minutes Liam and Hana approached, next to Bertrand and Maxwell.

“What do we have here?” Liam asked as we watched Alana with disgust. Alana looked embarassed and furious, she didn’t say a word.

“You better start talking,” Olivia eyed her carefully.

“Why would I?”

“We have proof that you aided Tariq and got him some very… disturbing images of him and Lady Ashley,” Liam said angrily.

“Yes, I snapped a few pictures for him and got paid, so what? Is that a crime now, under the rule of the new king?” she shook her head mockingly.

“No, it goes beyond that. We actually hacked into your email and found out something interesting – you’ve done this for several girls for Tariq, knowing fair well that they were being raped and molested. Now that you can be charged for. And since Lady Ashley is protected by the Crown, I can make sure that you get imprisoned for conspiring against the Crown,” Liam stared at her and I didn’t see an inch of his usual sweet demeanor. He was cold and angry, it was a little unsettling to see him this way. He was so upset.

“I’m not telling you squat. You need me, I don’t need you. You’re going to be by my side tomorrow, begging for me to talk and spill all my secrets,” she wasn’t fazed by his mean exterior, not at all.

“Actually, tomorrow we’re leaving for a few months, so you’ll be all locked up for a while until you see us again. Maybe you’ll want to speak to us then,” he said, furiously.

“Wait what?” she gasped and suddenly looked regretful of everything she said. Olivia smirked behind her.

“Shall I call the police?” Bertrand asked and Liam nodded at him.

“Call a different judge than Tariq’s, though. He can be bought, we need someone we can trust not to let this one slip by. Everything has to be done tonight so we can leave tomorrow morning knowing she’s imprisoned,” he pointed at Alana.

“Wait! Wait! I’ll talk!” Alana was suddenly pleading.

“Too late. You hurt the person I… I cared for very deeply. Now you have to pay for your crimes against her,” Liam didn’t look at her but straight at me. I smiled at him and saw the corner of his mouth move. He almost told her that he loved me.. Oh, how I wanted to hug him right now and calm him down.

“You did this to yourself,” Hana finally spoke as she looked angrily into Alana’s eyes. Alana looked sad and defeated. Justice was coming, but why didn’t that make me feel happy at all? If anything, I was even more sad than I was before.

__________________________

After the police came and took Alana, the judge listened to all of our statements and she sentenced Alana to 15 years in prison for aiding Tariq and endangering me. When Alana heard the verdict, she cried as if she had never cried before. I felt really bad for her and even though everyone told me this was the right thing, it didn’t feel like it. Yes, she did a very bad thing and was very arrogant towards everyone but Tariq was the one who was the real monster and travelling around the US, like it was nothing while the photographer was being sentenced. Yes, she did deserve something but the sentence was way too harsh, in my opinion but I couldn’t pursuade Liam otherwise. He was just so angry whenever he looked at her. Angry and disgusted. It really clouded his judgement. When we walked outside the courthouse, I quickly pulled him into the women’s bathroom.

“It doesn’t feel right,” I confessed. He looked at me, surprised.

“I thought you’d feel safer,” he said quietly.

“Putting Tariq behind bars would make me feel safer, not this,” I shook my head.

“Ashley, I would give you the world, you know that, don’t you? My people are searching for Tariq high and low right now, and we will get him, but shouldn’t we be happy for the thing we did today?”

“I just think that the punishment for her involvement is too harsh.”

“She did that to herself – she wasn’t ready to co-operate with us and she was cocky. She got what she deserved. Now, please, let me enjoy this,” he sighed and kissed my forehead. I smiled weakly at him. I knew that he was too stubborn and there was nothing I could do to change his mind, not right now.

 _Oh, Alana, I hope you tell us everything you know, when we get back,_ I thought.

_______________________________

“Have you had the chance to go to the doctor yet?” I asked my sister on the phone after I recounted everything that had happened today. My sister, also, thought that I was way too crazy and lenient towards Alana. But there was something there, she didn’t seem like she would do this because she _wanted_ to help Tariq. No, there was something else at play, something that made her do this. I just felt it in my bones, I couldn’t explain it, but it was my intuition. And I always trusted it – it has never steered me wrong. The times I didn’t listen to myself, I got into real trouble.

“I actually went yesterday and you’re NOT going to be an auntie anytime soon,” Rachel answered quietly.

“Why didn’t you tell me straight away?”

“You were busy,” she sighed.

“Wow, so that’s good news, isn’t it?” I said, stroking Sarah’s hair. She had just fallen asleep and since she wasn’t a light sleeper, I used her nap times and night-time sleeping times to call my family and find out what has happened and to check in with them.

“I’m actually kinda sad, Ash,” Rachel sighed.

“Why?”

“I actually got so attached to the idea of being a mom so young… I kinda liked it, especially since you’ve been the best mother ever. Watching you love her, made me realize that I’d do the same to my child and that isn’t coming true,” she sighed again.

“Oh, c’mon! I don’t doubt for a second that you’ll be a great mother, but haven’t you noticed that it wasn’t easy for me? I went to school and had to take care of a baby. Then the mom guilt of going to work and having this teeny tiny toddler at home, waiting for you. Believe me, you’re way better off. It’s better to have a baby when you actually can afford to take some time off than like this and stressing about everything. I finally get to have some time with my daughter and believe me, I can finally enjoy it,” I smiled and stroked Sarah’s hair some more.

“So are you saying that if you could – you’d change some things?”

“I do not regret having her so young, not at all, but if the opportunity would present itself – I would change a few things, like our financial situation,” I admitted.

“It’s just… I see the way she looks at you, it’s pure love and I want that.”

“She looks at you the same way, by the way, so stop it,” I chuckled. After a little arguing about the matter, she finally agreed that it wouldn’t be the best time for a baby.

“And imagine your baby’s grandparents being the Carlsfords,” I chuckled.

“I completely forgot about that aspect… Now, that would be miserable.”

“For everyone, especially me. They’re such snooty people,” I added.

“At least now you can rejoice in knowing that you won’t be related to them!”

“Oh, believe me, I will. Wait, you could wait a sec?” I heard knocking on my door.

When I opened it, I was surprised to see Olivia and Liam there, both were smiling.

“Hey, I’ll call you back, okay?” I told Rachel and hung up, I didn’t even wait for her answer.

“Hey guys, what’s up?” I smiled at both of them.

“Could you step in the hallway, please?” Liam asked and when I took a step forward, I noticed a punch thrown my way. I ducked but then I noticed Liam’s hand stopping it.

“Mara, I said don’t hurt her!” he said angrily and then I turned to a woman who had black, short hair in a impeccable black suit and an earpiece in her ear.

“It wouldn’t hurt, I just wanted to see her reaction. And it’s pretty great if you ask me,” the woman shrugged at Liam.

“What’s this?” I asked, confused at the situation and looking around for an answer.

“This is Mara, she’ll be the bodyguard assigned specifically to you. In the day, her job is to protect you but at night..”

“She gets time off?” I shrugged and Liam shook his head.

“No, when evening hits, you must train with her. When Olivia told me that you weren’t even prepared to run after Alana, I realized that we never really trained you yet. Sarah must join, too, I want her to learn combat,” Liam looked at me.

“Liam, no, Sarah is too young,” I shook my head.

“You must always be able to prepare to defend yourself, at any age, ” Olivia said and I sighed. I knew she was right, but I didn’t want to admit this. It felt like Sarah was way too young to understand why she would need to protect herself.

“At what age did you start training?” I asked both of them.

“I was 2,” Olivia said with a smirk on her face. She sounded very proud of that fact.

“My parents started training me at about 4, I think. I just want what’s best for you, Ashley,” Liam sighed and I realized that I couldn’t say no. It was reasonable and if I knew how to fight – maybe no one would want to mess with me anymore.

“Alright, but Sarah gets only one lesson, just to see how she gets on with it,” I eyed him carefully.

“That’s all I ask,” he nodded.

_What did I just get myself into?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry if the update is a little later than usual, it was my daughter's birthday and so many crazy things happened in my personal life, I didn't have much time to write but I hope to change that soon! :)  
> I hope you liked this chapter and that the story gets a little more exciting with each new chapter! Thank you for reading! :))


	27. The trip to Italy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm back and I'm so sorry for leaving unannounced, life got in the way and I had to have a surgery and then deal with moving and having no wifi or electricity. If anything, you can always contact me on Reddit by the nickname moonaffairs. Thank you for reading and being with me!   
> /// Finally, they get to Italy. Does Ashley impress the diplomat or does the diplomat impress her?

When the morning eventually came, I still felt uneasy. Something was going to happen, something huge, I was sure of it. The tour had started, and everyone convinced me that by putting Alana in jail, I was going to be safe. That I will feel better and safer in the morning. But I didn’t, my gut was practically screaming at me that this wasn’t the right way to do it. I had this deep feeling that it wasn’t right or fair to her. When I tried to plead with Bertrand to go see Alana, he looked at me as if I were crazy. Justin and Maxwell agreed with him and they said that I was being too nice to the woman. I sighed. There was no point in arguing with them, so I took our suitcases and stepped into the huge train that was taking us on the royal tour. From the outside, the train looked huge but from the inside, it felt like everyone will be crammed into little boxes. _Even royalty has to endure some things,_ I thought, while checking out the inside of the train.

Bertrand showed me and Sarah to our tiny train car and while we were unpacking, Sarah excitedly told me everything she learned from the other kids she was playing with. I was nodding at her, my mind still wandering back to Alana in jail. What did Tariq have on her? She was ready to talk to us at the end, but Liam dismissed her so fast. What was that all about? Was she going to tell us anything? Was that just Liam’s tactic to make her talk? I knew she wasn’t as bad as everyone wanted her to be. Something else was at play here, I felt it everywhere around me and it was annoying that no one seemed to believe me. My gut was right. I was right.

“Mommy, are you okay?” I heard Sarah’s little voice ask. I turned to her and faked the most genuine smile I could muster. I felt bad for not listening to her and letting my mind wander.

“Of course, everything’s great. Why do you ask?”

“You haven’t really been talking the whole morning like you usually do,” she sighed.

“I’m sorry mermaid girl, I’m just a little distracted,” I ruffled her hair and she smiled at me.

“Anything I can help with?”

“Not at the moment, but you know what?”

“What?”

“I got you this laptop so that we could access your online schooling and classes!” I smiled excitedly. Sarah started dancing a little happy dance and we both sat there for hours, trying to figure out the program and calling the teacher so that she could help us. The reception was unbelievably bad because we were crossing country borders and the program on the laptop wasn’t as easy to access as it was advertised. The teacher told us it was because it’s supposed to be one of the best online programes ever made in Cordonia for the kids. Yeah, it was. It was so “good”, we couldn’t even access it at first. I finally gave up and asked Drake for help. He didn’t look it, but he was exceptionally good with technology. He had us up and running within minutes.

“Don’t tell me this took you longer than twenty minutes, Fabiano?” Drake teased us.

“No, it took mommy and me much longer,” Sarah confessed, and I couldn’t help but stare at her in shock. I turned to Drake, who was smirking. He now had more ammunition to tease me with.

“Sarah!”

“Sorry, I’ll go join the virtual classroom now,” she said and happily jumped in the little bunk bed. I sighed. I knew I had to turn around to face him, but I really didn’t want to – he was ready to tease me, but I wasn’t ready to listen to it. I didn’t want to be teased anymore. I just wanted to go to bed and fall asleep in it and not think about what had happened.

There was a faint knock at the door and Olivia rushed in. She looked surprised when she saw me and Drake standing there. _Thank God_ , I thought, when I saw her. I wasn’t in the mood to be mocked right now.

“Has her schooling already started?” Olivia asked and pointed at Sarah, who was clicking away at her little laptop.

“Yeah, she just started today. What’s up, Olivia?” I looked at her. She looked back at me and Drake. I wished he’d get the hint, but he didn’t get it right away.

“Would you mind if I stepped outside with Olivia for just a little bit?” I asked him. He nodded. He seemed to finally understand that I wanted a private conversation. Me and Olivia stepped right outside our door.

“I’m not sure that we did the right thing by locking up Alana,” Olivia whispered in my ear when she made sure that no one was here to overhear us.

“Yes! Me too. Liam’s just too stubborn to see it, I want to talk to her and get her to talk,” I admitted. It felt good to say this out loud. I felt like I was crazy – everyone told me that it was fine, when in fact, it didn’t feel fine to me at all.

“Are you up for a little… adventure?” Olivia smiled at me mischievously.

“What kind of an adventure?”

“I was thinking that we could catch a flight from Italy to Cordonia tonight, after we meet with the Italian diplomats,” she grinned.

“Would that even be possible?”

“Of course. I am a duchess after all. What is my title good for if I can’t book a few last-minute flights on a private plane?” Olivia rolled her eyes. She had me there.

“But what about Liam? Could we really leave just like that? Wouldn’t he get suspicious?” I kept whispering.

“Liam? Liam would definitely get suspicious. He has good deductive skills. Maybe you’re in dire need of some clothes? He couldn’t say no to that.”

“He’s the king, one phone call and he can ship any clothes I need or want here. No, it has to be something else. Maybe…Hm,” I thought. Could this really work?

“WHAT? What do you have in mind?” Olivia whispered quietly but she looked like she was about to scream.

“We could tell him that you’d be interested in finding me a trainer as soon as possible?” I suggested.

“Maybe. After yesterday, I think he’d even encourage us to look for one,” Olivia smirked. I stared blankly right back at her.

“Olivia, was that a jab at me?”

“God, yes. Alana’s just a photographer, how much running do you think she does on a daily basis? You should’ve gotten some physical training a long time ago. We have quite a few enemies and we don’t have time to vet and check every bodyguard ever, we’re in charge of ourselves, at the end of the day. We can’t always look over your shoulder to see what you’re up to. Do you even know how many people would love to attack us while we’re doing God knows what? We’re not just a bunch of nobles that can’t fend for themselves, we’ve all been training constantly and believe me, any one of us would’ve outran Alana in a heartbeat, not just me,” Olivia shamed me with her hand on her hip and defiant smile. I felt my cheeks flush red. I didn’t want to feel embarrassed by her, but I did. Yes, it was true that I wasn’t trained but it wasn’t fair to shame me – I wasn’t bred for this lifestyle, my parents owned a bakery. A bakery! I didn’t know anyone in my regular life except for Daniel that went to the gym consistently. Not one person, and of course, I didn’t think about my own health as much before as I do right now. I stared right back at that cold look of hers. I did consider her a trustworthy person but this made me angry.

“Listen, I know you mean well but shaming won’t really get you anywhere with me,” I started.

“But-”

“No, it’s my turn to talk. Yes, I realize that all of the nobles in Cordonia regularly train, see their trainers and are prepared for anything that’s about to attack them – but I wasn’t born a noble, was I? I’ve never been taught that the world is a dangerous place and that everyone would love to attack me. Normal people don’t have access or the finances for personal trainers or time to actually train as much as you do. I wasn’t born here, I’ve been learning your customs since the start of the summer and believe me, it’s not enough time to learn about one’s culture and influences. I think I’ve done pretty good so far and let me be the first to tell you that I’m not in the best shape of my life but I am working on it and you can’t shame me for that. I tried – didn’t I? I failed but I tried and that’s a lot. I would never shame you for something you can’t do, so please, kindly, shut the hell up, Olivia and stop this childish shaming thing you have going on,” when I finally said everything, I glanced Olivia right in the eyes. She looked speechless and horrified. I was glad – I did like her but sometimes she was a bit much.

“So, are we going back to Cordonia or not?” she crossed her arms, completely ignoring our previous conversation. I smiled; I knew it was her way of acknowledging it.

“Of course, I only need a babysitter for Sarah and to tell Liam about our plans,” I replied excitedly.

“Ask Maxwell, I think they’re each other’s best friends,” Olivia sighed.

“I was thinking I could ask Liam to look after her for the night?”

“Liam? Isn’t it a bit too soon to have that conversation?”

“Well, I trust him. I trust him with all my heart,” I said but Olivia rolled her eyes. At the end, I did ask Maxwell and he gladly accepted the honor of being Sarah’s babysitter for the night. I really wanted Liam to bond with Sarah more but realized that this wasn’t the time – everyone’s eyes were on him, he was under a lot of pressure right now and me vanishing and leaving him with Sarah wouldn’t be a good look. Especially since he was supposed to marry one of my best friends.

*

Before dinner, Olivia texted me that everything was going to according to plan, she got a private plane to take us back to Cordonia after dinner and everything would be done discreetly, so the press wouldn’t even notice that we were going to be gone.

I told Liam about it through text just because it was just easier to lie through text and not look into his gorgeous face and feel guilty about it, and he, of course, thought it was a wonderful idea. A sudden, but all in all wonderful idea. I convinced him that it was the right move right now and even though, he disagreed about the timing, but he didn’t object any further. I hated the guilty feeling I had, especially since he trusted me, but he would not be as understanding, if I told him the real reasons we were going back. My safety since Tariq’s attack was a real trigger for him – he wasn’t able to think rationally and since he knew I was going with Olivia, so I was safe, in his eyes.

The train was slowing down but we were already in our fancy outfits– I was wearing a little black dress, but Sarah was wearing a white one, we looked like yin and yang. It was unusual for us, but I loved the concept. I heard a faint knock on the door and then Olivia’s red head poked in.

“The train stopped, we’re finally in Italy,” she smiled at us.

“Olivia, weren’t we supposed to be discreet?” I looked at her in amazement. Of course, she looked gorgeous – in her long sparkly purple gown. Who wouldn’t? I thought we were supposed to blend in and not attract attention, so I tried to look the part. Olivia, of course, didn’t look the part at all.

“I’m just having a little fun. We do have to impress the diplomats today,” she smiled mischievously.

“We’re supposed to have fun, too, aren’t we? They’re all important men and believe me, when I say that Italians know how to have fun,” she smirked at me.

“So, you’re the one doing all the fun parts, I’m guessing?” I chuckled.

“A little fun never hurt nobody,” she had a fun twinkle in her eye as she said it. I loved fun Olivia, she seemed so much more relaxed than serious Olivia.

“Does this have to do anything with the fact that Drake will be there?” I looked at her carefully. Her face didn’t change, and she tried not to give anything away, but her eyes, they told me everything I needed and wanted to know about tonight.

“You’re going to be great,” I said and Olivia smiled. We both looked over at Sarah who was calmly sitting on the laptop, playing some games. Sometimes the fact that she didn’t pay attention to what I was saying really was helpful.

There was a knock at the door, Olivia opened it and she came face to face with Drake.

“Oh! Olivia. Didn’t expect to see you here,” he smiled awkwardly and couldn’t stop staring at her sparkly dress. He was always in his jean jacket and always stood out from the crowd but right now, standing here with Olivia next to him, he really looked like he was in the wrong place.

“Yes, didn’t expect you either,” she answered coldly.

“Bertrand asked for the girls, so I just...”

“Of course, and I will just… See you later, Ashley,” Olivia said and practically ran from the train car. I sighed loudly. I just wanted this to be over – for them to settle their differences and decide whether they wanted to be together or not. It’d make everything so much easier for the rest of us. It wasn’t fun watching all of their awkward exchanges.

“C’mon Sarah, we have to go to dinner,” I said to the little girl still engrossed in her games.

“One more game, mommy?”

“Drake’s already waiting for us.”

“Wait, when did Olivia leave?” she looked around all confused.

“Just a minute ago,” Drake chuckled.

“When did you come in?”

“You really don’t pay attention to anything when you’re on the computer, do you?” Drake chuckled but Sarah still looked confused.

*

When we got in the black limo, Bertrand, Maxwell and Justin were already there waiting for us. Me and Sarah greeted them sweetly and waited for Drake to join us, too.

“Madeleine wants me to ride with her,” he said awkwardly, putting his arms around himself.

“But do you want to ride with Madeleine?” Sarah asked.

“Sarah!” I looked at her. That wasn’t very polite of her.

“What? He doesn’t like her very much.”

“Good point. Mind if I join you guys?” Drake asked and Maxwell smiled.

“Of course, you can, buddy. Our limo is your limo,” he said and patted on the seat next to him. Drake groaned but still got into the car and sat next to Maxwell. Maxwell was pleased by the choice.

“So, to the order of business,” Bertrand started, not wasting any time.

“We have to impress the Italian diplomats, we know, Bertrand,” Maxwell sighed, looking at his brother.

“No,” Justin interrupted the brothers.

“No?” Bertrand looked confused.

“No, Ashley has to impress the diplomats by herself. Especially Mr. Marelli. He’s the one she’d be really trying to impress; his opinions are valued by everyone. He’s also held the position the longest, so he is the most important asset right now. Impress him, make yourself unforgettable and he will surely put a good word in for you with other nobles whenever he gets a chance. Once impressed, he is very generous with his words. If he approves of you and your knowledge of Cordonia’s and Italy’s history, you’re another step closer to the goal,” Justin shot an unimpressed look at me. Everyone else was staring right back at Justin.

“We really want him to like you, Ashley. If you and Liam ever stand a chance of being together officially, that is,” Justin kept staring right at me and it felt like he was trying to look into my soul. I knew Bertrand told him about our little plan and what went on behind the scenes, so I felt a little better that there was one more person I didn’t have to hide my true intentions from.

“When Liam chooses Lady Ashley as his Queen publicly, he’ll want the support of every noble and every person supporting the Crown. This would be a great step forward. Impress Mr. Marelli and the Italian noblemen will stand behind Liam, no contest. Mr. Marelli is the most important man in Italy right now, everyone hangs on to his every word, even the journalists are mesmerized. He knows his way around people, he’s a charming devil and he has spoken out about Ashley publicly and that he would like to meet her himself, to find out if she is genuine or not,” Justin said seriously and looked into my eyes again, this time more intense than the previous _. So, I was on a mission to impress a guy that I knew nothing about. I knew nothing of Italy and its relationship with Cordonia, yet I had to convince him I do and that I know a lot. If I don’t – it would give ammunition to those who already don’t want me here. Well, great. No pressure or anything_. But I did feel a lot of pressure. Too much even, from every side. Drake looked worried when I looked at him for comfort. My face was probably giving my worries away, too, because he asked if I was okay.

“Of course, she’s fine!” Bertrand answered and tried to brief me for the dinner. I didn’t feel as confident in myself as everyone else seemed to be. I remembered nothing from the briefing, it went in one ear and out the other. When it was finally time to get off the limo, Drake stayed back with me and gently squeezed my shoulder.

“How are you?” he asked sincerely, and I exhaled loudly.

“Nervous,” I smiled at him.

“Well, you better get used to it. As time will pass by, it won’t get any easier.”

“Wait, what? It won’t?”

“Of course, it won’t, the pressures will only grow when you become the Queen. Liam always gets super nervous before every public appearance or speech, he has to take a few minutes to calm himself,” Drake admitted, and I gasped at the new information. Liam was always so calm and collected, I knew he probably got a bit nervous, but _every_ public appearance? Will this be my life, too? I probably looked terrified because Drake was stroking my back while I freaked out internally.

“Drake, am I even cut out for this?” I looked into his eyes and he smiled.

“Is anyone? I’ve seen the weight of the Crown destroy lives. You’re probably not cut out for this, but neither is Liam. Or any noble with genuine intentions of helping others,” he answered slowly.

When we finally joined Bertrand and the others, he looked furious.

“Why are you gallivanting around with the commoner? You should be seen socializing with the nobles if you want to make a name for yourself,” he whispered angrily to me when we came in. I stared right back at him. I couldn’t believe the words that were coming out of that man’s mouth. Was he still really like that? I thought he was better than this.

“Can you just give me a moment to breathe?” I looked back at him, furiously. He gasped and took a step back.

“Could you not do this in public? People are watching,” he said quietly and calmly.

“I will, when you treat every person with the respect they deserve,” my voice was steady but all I wanted to do was to scream at him until he got it through his thick skull that he couldn’t treat normal people like this. Some of the guests shared a few looks and we started to gain attention. Bertrand nodded and walked away quickly, so that no more people could get notice of this. But at least Drake looked like he enjoyed it. He smiled at me and I smiled back. I felt better. A lot better.

*

“They’re perfect, aren’t they?” I heard Maxwell’s voice behind me as I watched Liam and Hana greet all of the nobles first.

“Too perfect, that you can’t help but wonder…”

“If they actually like being together?” Maxwell ended the sentence and I looked up at him in surprise. I nodded and he sighed.

“If you’re worried, then maybe I should be, too,” he whispered. I squeezed his hand.

“Oh, Maxwell. It’s just – they seem like the perfect couple, no? I’m just this commoner that nobody really knows but Hana’s parents have been building her reputation since she was born, probably. She’s the obvious choice – no one ever even questioned that he WOULD choose her, some were shocked but not that much and I think that hurts,” I whispered back.

“So, we’re in the same boat. Let’s just hope they love us just as much as we do them,” he smiled at me. I smiled back. I did know Liam loved me but I wasn’t so sure that he could or would choose me over the Crown. Would he leave this life if it was the only hope for us to be together? I crossed my fingers, hoping that it would be the case.

*

When we finally got the chance to meet and greet the diplomats of Italy, almost everyone had already done so and were sitting down. I looked over the Italian delegation and they all seemed friendly, with fake smiles plastered on them. One of them stood out – he didn’t have a grey or a black suit like the others, oh no. His suit was a deep, blood red and he had a purple tie. An unusual choice but it didn’t look bad at all. His hair was up in a pompadour hairstyle and just by looking at him, I knew his manners were impeccable. Just by looking at him, he looked like he would be Olivia’s type. He was in her colors, after all.

I smiled when I realized he was just staring right at me. I stared right back, not breaking our eye contact, hoping to show him that I wasn’t scared easily. When I felt my eyes growing tired, he looked away suddenly and after a few seconds he was right beside me, Olivia and Sarah.

“I’m honored to be in the presence of such beauty,” he gestured at us, Sarah got a little shy and hid behind my dress as I held her little hand. Oh, he was very charming. Olivia seemed to melt, she smiled, giggled and acted in a way that I only had seen her with Drake.

“Olivia, do you have a crush on this man?” I whispered to her and she giggled as a response. I smiled and stared right back at the gorgeous man.

“Lady Ashley, could we sit down for dinner, just the two of us?” he smiled at me and I nodded, obviously nervous. Sarah kept holding my hand, so I asked if she could join. He looked surprised but agreed right away. He guided us towards the balcony where a table for two was set. Mr. Marelli looked at one of the waiters who glanced at Sarah and realized right away that another chair was to be placed – he obliged and brought another plate with utensils. We thanked him and he smiled back at us. It was hard for me to believe that just a few months earlier, I was a waitress myself.

“Lady Ashley, what do you think about the tax incentives that Cordonia has put on the honest Italian craftsmen, who want to sell their work in Cordonia?” he asked suddenly. I was surprised – he seemed so refined and not at all hasty.

“Honestly?”

“Yes, I’d love for some of that American honesty the press is writing about,” he said and nonchalantly started eating the food in front of us. Did he really want my honest opinions or the opinions that favor him? At first, I didn’t know what to say because I really wanted him to think I was this refine, smart person and make a Bertrand-like impression on him. But I realized that it wasn’t me.

“If I have to be honest – right now I’m overwhelmed,” I answered in a cool tone.

“Oh?” he shot a surprised look at me.

“Of course, I’ve just became accustomed to Cordonia, it’s lengthy traditions and culture, learning about the people and what they’ve gone through in the recent years, juggling nobility, customs, relationships, manners and who’s who. Nothing ever comes easy to me, so the knowledge of this country isn’t either and it’s hard enough to learn about everything from the inside, I haven’t even been looking at what’s happening with Cordonia’s neighbors and how the relationships have formed,” I exhaled loudly. Sarah smiled encouragingly at me and we both looked at the Italian diplomat. Did I screw this all up? Did I just risk it all to avoid answering a simple question that I was actually trained for?

“That’s … refreshing,” he finally answered after a long pause.

“Refreshing?” I cocked my eyebrow.

“Oh yes! You see, nobles usually answer all of my questions the same way – as they’ve been trained and even though I like most of their answers, it’s boring and predicable. The press had been raving about you, saying that you’re a fresh breath of air and you give the nobility a run for their money. And I agree – you make these nobles really work for it, most of them aren’t very nice people, so seeing someone like you in court is very humbling,” he smiled at me. I looked at Sarah who was agreeing. He didn’t want to talk about the nobles for the rest of the evening, so all we did was talk about our life in America and he asked so many questions – it felt like two friends talking instead of a diplomat judging my knowledge of Cordonia.

“Wow, I’ve never heard him talk so much,” Olivia said when we finally were finished and re-joined the others.

“What? I talked the most, he barely got a word out,” I laughed.

“Mommy, he did sound impressed, you were great!” Sarah praised me and I held her hand.

We sat there, quietly as I was silently celebrating my little victory – I didn’t make a fool out of myself! It was a huge win for me. Then I saw Drake and knew – something was wrong. He gestured for me to come to him. I left Sarah with Olivia and walked quickly over.

“What’s wrong?” I whispered quietly.

“Do you remember those pictures that almost got leaked to the public a while ago?”

“I remember you telling me about them, yeah. Why? Did you find the culprit?”

“I did. It was Maxwell,” Drake’s face contorted. He looked sad and angry at the same time while I was in disbelief. Maxwell? Maxwell, the one who always cheered us up, was Sarah’s best friend and always made up an excuse to dance? Maxwell, who was vulnerable and was afraid that Hana wouldn’t want to be with him? THAT Maxwell?

“No, it can’t be. It isn’t,” I replied quickly. I KNEW it wasn’t him. I could feel it in my bones and with every fiber of my being.

“Then can you explain why he is the only one absent from all of the photos of the bachelor party? He isn’t in any of them, which means he took the photos, which means…”

“He’s most likely the culprit,” Olivia joined in and finished the sentence for him.

“No,” I shook my head. I turned to look at Maxwell who was already commandeering the room with his dance moves. He seemed to have no care in the world. I knew that it was about to change.


	28. The Secret Rendezvous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Ashley gets confronted by someone she holds dear, she flees back to Cordonia to find out that the police force also have secrets of their own. What will she uncover next in search of Tariq?

I looked back at Drake, who was giving the death stare to Maxwell, but Maxwell was just being, well, Maxwell, not noticing anything else but his dance battle with one of the Italian delegates. I smiled. The whole situation was too amusing to be true. 

“How can you even smile at a moment like this?” Olivia gasped and looked me in the eyes with a death stare, too.

“Because it’s not Maxwell,” I replied, confidant in my answer. I didn’t accept this to be true. Not Maxwell, not now, not ever. I trusted him wholeheartedly. Not like this.

“He was the only one taking pictures that night, he isn’t in any of them,” Drake interrupted.

“And that’s the only proof you have?”

“That’s the only proof I NEED,” Drake replied, clearly annoyed at me.

Maxwell walked up to us after being deemed victorious against the Italian man. He flashed his childish grin, and I was the only one that smiled back at him.

“Why so glum?” Maxwell asked, looking at Drake and Olivia, and Olivia scoffed at him.

“You know what you did,” Drake slowly said in a low voice.

“Yeah, I won a dancing challenge completely sober,” he grinned back at Drake, who was clearly upset.

“No, you bastard, you betrayed us and gave this to the media!” Drake threw the pictures at Maxwell, who picked them up.

“Hey, it’s Liam’s bachelor party!” Maxwell exclaimed happily, not listening or clearly not listening to the accusations.

“You should know, you tried to sell the pictures to the media,” Olivia scoffed at him again.

“No, I didn’t,” Maxwell replied quietly.

“Luckily, me and Bastien uncovered that quickly and bought them from you, you piece of garbage,” Drake said.

“Guys, it wasn’t me, I wouldn’t do it, the pictures were for my scrapbook.”

“Yeah, who was it then?” Olivia scoffed. As she said those words, something in my head just clicked. Like a light bulb going off. Oh why didn’t I think of this sooner? Bertrand. It was Bertrand! I wanted to kick myself for not realizing this earlier.

“Olivia, it wasn’t him.”

“Ashley, he just says it wasn’t him and you believe him? Who else would have a motive to do this?” as she said the words, I could see, she realized the same thing I did just moments before.

“Okay, if it’s not you, it’s definitely your brother,” Olivia said, and I nodded.

“Finally, we’re all caught up,” I said, determined.

“No, Bertrand wouldn’t do that. Not to us, not to the Crown. He loves nobility, why would he embarrass it?” Maxwell wasn’t convinced. 

“Because money speaks way louder than words, Maxwell, ” I sighed. I didn’t want to say it, but here I was saying it. I looked at Bertrand who was happily chatting with everyone and having a nice time.

“Yeah, I still think it’s Maxwell,” Drake sized him up.

“It’s not,” I groaned.

“I would never do this to you guys. I took the pictures, but it was just so we had good memories of that night, I would never try to sell them,” Maxwell stared blankly at Drake.

“Why should I believe a word that comes out of your mouth?” Drake crossed his arms.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because you’ve known me since we were children and I’ve never gave you the reason to believe otherwise. Why are you insistent that it’s me?” he gasped.

“I… Well, no, fuck this, why should I feel guilty for thinking it’s you?”

“Why would you want it to be me?”

“Stop it, you’re both just embarrassing yourselves,” Olivia rolled her eyes.

“What?” both of them looked at Olivia.

“It’s clearly Bertrand, no wonder he’s been blabbing about his money issues to you, Maxwell, his books aren’t in order at all, any good accountant could tell you that. He did it for a pretty big payday, this is obvious now,” she said, clearly bored with the conversation.

“But he wouldn’t…” as Maxwell started defending him, Olivia laughed.

“Ha! He had all us tricked. Just because he is your brother, doesn’t mean that he’s not up to his own agenda,” as she said it, we fell silent. I was still in a bit of shock – it was hard to believe that my mentor and the person who trained me, could do this just for money. I thought he was better than that.

“What else could he be plotting? Look at that evil smile,” Olivia said, as we all stared at Bertrand who moved with ease from person to person, saying hello.

“Careful, he’s still my brother!” Maxwell interrupted.

“Yet, he’s still the bastard who wanted to put Liam and Ashley in harm by creating a scandal, you do realize that don’t you?”

“I... I do,” his head hung low. I sighed.

“I’ll stop this parade,” Olivia said, looking back at us. I didn’t have the heart to stop her, since all I wanted was the truth. Was he really out to get me since day one? He was let into our little group, I trusted him wholeheartedly, he knew our plans. Was he a traitor and will expose that, too? I quickly turned to take a peak at Hana and Liam, who were speaking to some delegates and delightfully smiling.

“You!” I heard Olivia shout and when I turned around, she was walking slowly up to Bertrand, pointing her perfectly manicured finger at him.

“Duchess Olivia, please don’t point your finger at me, I’m a respectable member of society,” he said calmly as Olivia came dangerously close. You could see that he was starting to worry a little. His eyebrow twitched and it looked like his breathing was heavier than usual.

“A respectable member of society wouldn’t betray the Crown in the way that you did,” she looked him up and down in disgust.

“How dare you? What is the meaning of this? Lady Ashley? Maxwell? Care to explain?” he turned to us and shouted so loud that everyone had noticed. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, the waiters, the royals, Liam and Hana, the delegates, Madeleine, even Noah, who was absent from a lot of the moment, was here, staring. They all turned to the commotion and stared at Olivia. I just knew that Olivia loved the attention, I saw a smile creeping up at the corner of her mouth.

“If you needed a nice lump of cash, why didn’t you just ask, instead of going to the press?” Olivia put a hand on her hip.

“I have no clue what you’re trying to insinuate.”

“Oh, really? Then what’s this?” she threw pictures at his feet. Everyone went silent and waited for Bertrand to pick up the photos. As he did, his face went pale when he realized what he was looking at.

“So much for loyalty to the Crown,” I added. I looked at Sarah, who stared at me from across the room, horrified. I didn’t blame her, I would be, too.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I insist you drop this nonsense,” he looked at Olivia with daggers for eyes. She smiled.

“Are you denying your involvement in all of this?”

“This isn’t what it looks like!” he shouted.

“Oh, dear Bertrand, what does this look like?”

“House Bertrand was in ruins! In ruins, I tell you, we couldn’t pay any of our staff and most of them quit, some loyal ones did stay, but that wasn’t enough for this… lavish lifestyle. I found the pictures in Maxwell’s room one day and they looked spicy enough that I knew I could sell them and get...”

“A large sum of cash?” I asked and stepped forward. Bertrand looked at me uneasily.

“Yes. And you’ve got to understand, Lady Ashley, I didn’t know you very well at the time. Maxwell had just brought you into our lives, all I knew of you was, that you’re a single mom and from New York. I had no clue that you’d learn these customs so quickly or that you’d become so close to House Beaumont,” he sighed.

“So, you didn’t think I had it in me to win?” I asked, fully well knowing the answer. I remember meeting him the first time.

“Of course, I didn’t. And you didn’t win. As I predicted, so you can’t say that I was wrong,” he looked straight into my eyes. I felt tears coming, but I held them back. How dare he? How dare he say this to me, knowing I had to do this, to protect myself, my daughter and my friends? He knew the true situation. I turned to Sarah, but she was gone with Maxwell. I didn’t want him to give the satisfaction of me leaving without saying anything.

“You’re not as refined as you think you are, Duke Beaumont,” I said quietly, everyone staring at me. I felt Liam’s gaze at me, and I knew how much he wanted to comfort me. Oh, how I wanted to be comforted by him! Olivia hugged me and then tugged on my arm. Everyone disassembled quickly, lucky for me. I knew that I was going to make headlines tomorrow, but right now I didn’t care anymore, I was confused. About everything. Who could I really trust after this?

“Let’s go, we need to catch a flight, ” the Scarlet Duchess took my hand in hers and I obeyed. I wanted to be far away from Bertrand as possible.

“Hey, where are you two sneaking off to?” Drake ran up to us, as he saw us leaving through the doors.

“Nowhere.”

“Cordonia,” I replied automatically.

“Ashley! _He_ didn’t need to know!” she sneered at me.

“What? Why?”

“None of your business,” Olivia basically dragged me outside, with Drake hot on our heels asking questions that Olivia ignored.

“You can’t just create drama and just leave me here!” Drake complained.

“Who says?”

“I do,” he stepped forward. They both kept staring each other down, they were so close.

“Oh, for the love of everything that is good in this world, either kiss and make up or move on,” I groaned. They both turned at me, clearly surprised.

“What? I’m so sick of you both just ignoring and being butt hurt at each other, either you move on and act like you’re friends, or make up and be a couple again. I honestly can’t stand this – will they or won’t they. Get over yourselves, if you still like each other, try to be civil. And there’s a lot of sexual tension between you, honestly,” I whistled at them and it was funny to see both of them blush.

“Well,” Olivia smiled.

“Fabiano, you don’t mean that.”

“Oh, but I do. Either talk it out or forget it, I’m sick and tired of watching this. Either be together or leave each other alone, this is getting old.”

“Okay, come with us, but don’t you even think of any funny stuff!” Olivia said, pointing her finger at him.

“Hey, you don’t have to tell me twice, I’m not Maxwell,” he smiled and the both of them finally got into the limo.

The limo ride was quick, I was looking through the window the whole ride and them just murmuring stuff. I wasn’t in the mood to listen, all I kept thinking was – was I in over my head? If Bertrand could do this to me, what else had he planned? Was he going to tell someone about us? Was he there to sabotage us and let Liam marry Hana so that I wouldn’t even have a chance?

When we had to get out of the fancy limo, I groaned. At this moment, I wanted my simple drama free life back. It was so simple, so easy. Just thinking about me and Sarah.

As I stepped into the plane, I couldn’t help but think about Bertrand. He didn’t deserve any attention, but I was spiralling in my head – so many things were going on at once, it felt like I couldn’t catch my breath.

I sat in the front of the empty plane. One of the privileges of flying with a Duchess, was that she could afford a private plane and I didn’t have to stare at everyone else.

“Ashley?” a voice interrupted me.

“M?”

“Are you okay? You haven’t said a word the whole way here,” Drake’s face appeared. He actually seemed sincere. But what if he… Oh God, I didn’t want to think it, but what if he wasn’t sincere? What if it was the Bertrand situation again?

“Yes, of course,” I smiled positively.

“Doesn’t look like it,” he said and plopped into a seat next to me. I groaned and he raised an eyebrow.

“I’m fine, really.”

“Look, if it’s about Bertrand – forget about that bastard. What does he even know? He’s never been in love, not really. He wouldn’t know what it’s like even if it hit him in the head,” he smiled.

“I’ve been told he was in love with your sister,” I disagreed.

“No, that was probably just… like friends with benefits situation or something. I don’t think the man is capable of love.”

“I do.”

“You do?” he looked surprised.

“Of course, I do. I believe everyone is capable of it, you included,” I smiled his way and wiggled my eyebrows towards where Olivia was sitting.

“Oh no, that’s not what you think,” he said.

“Just don’t hurt her. Please. I know she hurt you, but I don’t think she’ll recover from you anytime soon. If you plan on being serious with her – be my guest, but if you hurt her, Drake Walker, I will honestly, kick your tiny little ass,” I warned him. He looked a little spooked but nodded, in understanding.

We chatted for a bit and then he went on to sit with Olivia. I sighed in relief, finally, I was alone, with my thoughts. I didn’t want to share them with anyone right now. When we landed in Cordonia, I turned to Olivia and Drake.

“This is where we leave you, see you tomorrow!” I said, trying to walk past him but he grabbed my hand.

“Wait, what? You’re seriously not going to tell me what’s going on?”

“We did, we have a trainer to find,” Olivia replied quickly.

“Then why can’t I come with you?”

“Because I don’t think you’re a good judge of character,” I said, trying to think of something quickly.

“What? I can help you choose a trainer.”

“Ha!” Olivia sneered.

“I can! I’ve been trained by the best. I mean, Bastien, but still, he’s as good as anyone on the force!”

“Oh, c’mon, Drake, I really wanted some alone time with Olivia and to pick a trainer with her, why can’t I have this one little thing that I’ve been looking forward to?” I groaned and he finally let up.

“Okay, alright, see you tomorrow, I have some business to attend to anyway. Bastien’s here, too, I might as well have a whiskey with him,” he said and walked away.

“Bastien’s in Cordonia? That’s odd, I always thought he was with the King,” I said.

“ _Ahem_!”

“Sorry! Former King. But Bastien had been by the former king’s side quite a lot, hasn’t he?”

“Yeah, he never leaves him, unless…“

“Unless?”

“Unless the former king is also back for a day. Did you see him today, with the delegates?”

“No, not really. I thought everyone was there, but to think of it… no. Queen Regina wasn’t there either,” I turned to Olivia.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” she said urgently and we got to the police station as fast as we humanly could. Well, as fast as the car we rented out could drive with Olivia behind its wheel. Olivia definitely wasn’t one of the slower drivers, that’s for sure.

When we finally climbed out of it, I ran up the stairs and was left breathless at the entrance, while Olivia came behind me.

“You were faster than usual, but your breathwork needs some help, it’s not even been a few minutes and you’re out of breath. We really should get you a real trainer while we’re here,” she shook her head.

“It’s late, where are we going to get a trainer at this hour?” I rolled my eyes.

“I could do it?” she suggested. I gasped, it actually sounded like a brilliant idea – she was ruthless and that was exactly what I needed to survive in the royal family.

Olivia let me cool down for a moment and then we went straight into the police station.

“Anything we could do for you, Scarlet Duchess?” a man sitting behind the desk, in a blue police uniform, asked quietly. He looked in awe of Olivia and I couldn’t blame him, she was looking fabulous, even after the flight and the ride here.

“Yes, actually. Take me to the jail cell of Alana Porto,” she demanded.

“I’m afraid, I can’t actually do that, Scarlet Duchess,” he did a little bow, it was really amusing to watch. The man was young and clearly infatuated with her.

“And why would that be?” she crossed her arms in disdain.

“Well, you see, the Police Chief called yesterday morning and he insisted we transport Alana Porto somewhere else, for her own safety and sanity,” he seemed flustered.

“Alana wasn’t a danger to herself,” I interrupted. Olivia looked at me and nodded.

“Where was she taken?”

“Well, I shouldn’t… I should not tell you, this, you know, I might… I might…”

“WHERE?” she demanded. Her voice was loud and domineering, and the man got even more nervous.

“Before I reveal anything more, I really should… contact my Chief, if you understand, I just can’t give out this… this information to just anyone who walks in,” he said, nervously.

“Do I look like someone who just walked in from the street? I am the Duchess of this country, Lythikos is under my rule, what else would you need, you puny little man?” she looked at him, like she was disgusted and he was very afraid.

“Olivia! You won’t get any information out of him like this! Stop!” I told her. She tensed a little but then let go.

“Okay, okay, I’m fine,” she said and loudly exhaled.

“Sorry about that, but as you can see, we’re a bit frustrated with the situation. Could you please, please help us get to the bottom of this, anyway you can?” I smiled at the man, who seemed to calm down a little.

“Of course, Lady Ashley. I’d be glad to assist you as soon as I contact my Chief of Police, if you don’t mind,” his voice was still a little nervous. I nodded and he ran off somewhere.

“He looks like a rat, he will tell the Chief that I was being extremely mean or rude or something,” Olivia scoffed.

“And you were being mean! Would you treat anyone in Lythikos like this?” I could tell she was surprised by my question.

“Well, no, they’re loyal to me and they respect me,” she replied quietly.

“You barged into his workplace, demanded information and scared him, what did you expect? He probably respects you, too, but you haven’t really given him a chance. Not a real chance, anyway,” I sighed.

“Well, what do you expect? I’m very demanding, and I’ll be super demanding in our training too,” she defended herself.

“That’s fine, but this person didn’t even deserve it, of course, he was nervous, I don’t think the royals come to his place of work every day and demand information. Of course, he has to authorize it with his boss, you should be glad that security is high in a place like this.”

“Okay, okay, I get it, no need to rub it in,” she rolled her eyes again.

As we looked around, I noticed two familiar faces – the same two women who took down my statement to get Tariq locked up for good. _That didn’t pan out the way it was supposed to._

“Hey, I’m sorry to interrupt,” I walked up to the blonde and the dark-haired ladies, who seemed busy at work.

“Oh gosh, hello, sweetie! Are you okay? What are you doing here?“ the blonde seemed happy to see me and then surprised.

“Actually, I was looking for Alana Porto, I really need to speak with her. Have you got any clue as to where she was taken and why?”

“Oh, darling, I wish I could tell you more, but all I know is that we were put on high-alert after her arrest. The guards there said that she was suicidal and threatening everyone there and we had to put her in another jail so that she wouldn’t harm herself or others,” the blonde shook her head.

I looked at the dark-haired one, who mouthed “follow me“, and I nodded.

“While Lady Ashley waits, I’ll show her the update to her current situation,” she put on a fake smile that was obvious to me, but strangely enough, not obvious for the colleague who smiled back.

“Situation?” Jenny asked.

“Yes, where we think Tariq is and all that,” the dark-haired woman said and stood up. She lead me into a filing cabinet and closed the doors.

“So, what’s with Tariq?” I whispered as she closed the door.

“No update, but all I wanted to say is that things are getting very strange here. The Police Chief came by yesterday, he almost never comes here and the woman he asked for was Alana Porto. Then he comes by to tell us that she’s being transported. And today, a man, with dark hair, moustache and a beard came in, wearing the King’s guard’s uniform, was looking for Alana, to transport her and when I looked at the reports this morning, it said that she was being transferred to New York,” she whispered and said the information so quickly it almost didn’t register.

“What?”

“And things got even weirder, when I looked at her report about an hour ago – it didn’t say anything about New York anymore. Her file was wiped clean. She was just “transported” to this other jail cell that no one even knows about. I haven’t even been there, but I have an address, and that’s it. Something’s off with the higher ups, I just know it, but I can’t prove anything. Lady Ashley, you have to believe me, I don’t have an idea who to trust and tell this to, but you’re the one who Tariq hurt, so I know this information will be safe with you,” she pleaded. Something strange was happening, indeed.

“I do believe you and thank you for trusting me. Do you think this involves Tariq?”

“Oh, absolutely.”

“So do I,” I sighed.

“I’ll give you the address of the jailcell, I quickly wrote it off the papers that were wiped off, so you can check it out for yourselves,” she said, and I nodded.

“Marina! I’m going on a lunch break!” I heard Jenny knocking on the door.

“Okay!” Marina answered.

When we walked outside, Olivia was furious.

“This little weasel just had the audacity to tell me that the Chief of Police will not let me see Alana! Me, the Duchess! Me! Olivia Nevrakis! Can you even imagine?” she shook her head and arms furiously.

“Okay, calm down drama queen, everything’s alright! We’ll be on our merry way,” I smiled at the man politely, who looked very relieved to hear that.

“Ashley!” Olivia protested.

“Come on now, let’s thank the man for his help and be on our way,” I kept smiling and thanked the man, who suddenly looked extremely excited. He got a personal thank you from the Scarlet Duchess, who wouldn’t be happy?

“Okay, what gives?” Olivia asked as we sat in the rental car again.

I told her about my conversation with Marina, the police officer and everything seemed to check out. We were being played – someone really didn’t want us talking to Alana.

“Do you think she was being transported back to Tariq?” Olivia asked.

“Definitely, we just need to confirm it, by checking out the address. Maybe we can find a clue or something there. If she was there, she definitely could’ve left something behind,” I nodded.

“It all starts to fit together, like a puzzle,” Olivia smiled as we neared the address. She turned off the headlights, there was almost nothing here, just the road, the trees and some incredibly old houses.

“There!” I pointed to a lonely house up a little hill, it had lights on and you could see some figures walking around.

“Does it look like a jail cell to you?” Olivia asked.

“Nope, but I’m sure she was there for a night at least.”

Olivia parked her car so that we wouldn’t be visible from the house and took out her binoculars.

“Can you even see through that thing?” I laughed.

“Of course, it’s specifically designed to see in the dark, wait, I see something,” she gasped and dropped the binoculars.

“What? What?” I asked as Olivia looked shocked. I picked them up and took a look by myself. I saw two figures walking around. I looked a little closer and realized that it was… Bastien and Drake. _No way. No way, no way._

“Drake couldn’t be in on this. Could he? No. He’s just as innocent as Maxwell. Right? Right? Olivia, tell me I’m right before I start to freak,” I felt a pit in my stomach.

“I honestly have no clue,” Olivia gasped.


	29. The Cabin

“What do we do now?” I looked at Olivia who shrugged at me.

“You were the one who wanted to be here!”

“To look for clues! I had no idea Drake would be here!”

“Me too! Oh God. He wouldn’t be working with the royals, no way. I don’t believe it,” Olivia said, slowing her breath. I patted her back, trying to calm her and myself down. There must be a logical explanation to all of this. There’s always a logical explanation when Drake is involved.

“What if… we call Drake and ask him what’s he up to?”

“Oh, Ashley, and he’d be like: “plotting with Bastien against you, of course”. Is that what you expect to hear?”

“No, but if he lies about his whereabouts, we’ll know something’s up.”

“Okay, well, who should be the one to do it?”

“You, of course, you’re involved,” I shook my head at her.

“We’re not involved… Yet. But I guess, I would call to see how he’s doing, wouldn’t I?” she smiled mischievously.

“Yes, you would!” I agreed. I watched her pull up Drake’s number on her phone and put up a fake smile.

“Hey Drake, are you back at the palace? Me and Ashley are finished, and we’d love to have dinner. Uh, yeah, we’re still in the Capital. You are? With Bastien? Marshmallows? At this time you’d expect me to roast marshmallows? No, I am not dressed for it. Dinner? Yeah, we’re famished, we were thinking of… Oh? So you really want us there? How long is the drive? Okay, see you in 20, ” Olivia smiled as she hung up the phone.

“So?”

“Drake says that Bastien invited him to his place in the country to have dinner and a quiet night in,” Olivia said seriously.

“Bastien’s place?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think Drake knows what we know?” I hated to even think about it, but everyone was a suspect. Well, to me, everyone was a suspect.

“No. I think he’s as clueless as the rest of them. So we need to act the part, so Bastien doesn’t get suspicious” she sighed.

“I know, I know, you’re right. I just… I want this to be over, I’m tired of all the secrets, the lies, the drama. I want it to end,” as I said the words, Olivia started giggling.

“What?”

“Welcome to the royal life. There’s a whole lot of drama here,” she smiled at me.

“Ugh,” I groaned.

We stayed in the car, in the dark, for about ten minutes, I was still freaking out while Olivia was calming me down. _Drake wouldn’t. No. He wasn’t. He was one of the good guys._

When I finally calmed down, we decided on a story, what did we do, what kind of people we saw, how I didn’t like any of them. The story was plausible at best, but I wasn’t going for anything more. I just needed enough people to believe me.

“Go time,” Olivia said as she started driving and turned on the headlights so that Drake could spot us. She drove slowly, as if she didn’t know where we were. When we drove closer, we saw two silhouettes standing there and waving.

“That must be them,” I pointed it out and Olivia nodded.

“Ready?”

“Not really.”

“Doesn’t matter,” she said as she stopped the car. I slowly unbuckled my seatbelt and got out of the car.

“Hello Duchess, hello Lady Ashley,” Bastien greeted us with the warmest smile I’ve ever seen. Luckily, it was dark, and he didn’t see my face – I probably looked very annoyed and surprised.

“Hello Bastien. How’s things?”

“Couldn’t be better, this was one of my rare days off and I spent it right here, in my own cabin,” he smiled as he pointed at his tiny little house.

“Oh, so its yours?” I smiled.

“Yes. It’s small, I know, but for a family of three it was enough,” Bastien nodded, looking proud.

“Bastien, you have a family I know nothing about?” Olivia eyed him carefully.

“Oh no, Duchess, I lived here with my parents, it was just the three of us. My father built this with his own two hands, and we were quite happy here. That’s why I like being here. It’s… _home_ ,” he said.

So it was Bastien’s cabin… _He is definitely involved with all of this_ , I said to myself.

“Ashley you okay?” Drake asked as we walked in the direction of the cabin. Olivia pulled Bastien in front of him and asked him all sorts of questions. He had a hearty laugh, but Olivia kept insisting he answer her. I turned back to Drake, as I realized that he had asked me if I’m okay.

“Uh. Yeah,” I answered.

“So did you get a trainer?”

“Uh, yeah. But you won’t expect it,” I smiled at him.

“I really doubt it… unless… No. Did she make you choose her? ” he widened his eyes.

“What?”

“Did Olivia tell you that everyone else wasn’t good enough, so you HAD to pick her?” Drake asked.

“What? No. We decided that together.”

“I don’t buy it. You wouldn’t take orders from Olivia,” Drake shook his head laughing.

“I would!”

“Yeah, if it’s life or death, not actually training. You’d talk to her like she’s the child, you’ll have a petty argument and then it’s going to be over. Please choose a real trainer, Ashley. I can help you choose one while we’re here. I know someone,” he looked at the direction of Olivia and Bastien.

“I WON’T train with Bastien,” I said, realizing what he offered.

“Woah. What’s with the attitude? And why not? He’s excellent and he wouldn’t push you to your limits.”

“Drake, I need someone to push me to my limits, if I want to be ready for a real confrontation. You don’t seem to realize that I WANT to be as badass as Olivia is. Sure, she has some flaws, we all do, but this is the thing that she actually excels at. This is where her skills are useful, and since I’m new to this and I want to be in the best shape as soon as I can be, I need her. No one else would even compare,” I looked at him sternly.

There was something in the air. It felt strange. It was fresh air, but somehow, I didn’t feel good at all. Everything was going wrong, nothing was going according to our plans and being here, with Bastien, and knowing for a fact that he was lying about his day off just made it worse. Did he do something to Alana? Did Drake know? Was he in on it? It didn’t look it, otherwise he wouldn’t invite us there, would he?

 _It’s a trap._ My anxiety wasn’t helping. I kept repeating to myself that I was safe here, with Drake and Olivia but it didn’t help that much, my fingers started shaking, my vision got blurry, it felt like I couldn’t get words out of my mouth, I had trouble breathing normally but I tried to keep walking as if nothing was wrong.

When we reached the cabin, we didn’t go straight inside. I didn’t want to, I felt sick to my stomach and I walked around the cabin.

“Ashley, what’s wrong?” Olivia asked.

“Anxiety,” Drake responded before I had the chance to.

“How would you know?” she sneered at him.

“My little sister used to have panic and anxiety attacks; it sure looks like it. Her breathing is heavy and she doesn’t look so good,” Drake said, looking at me. I felt panic creeping in _. He knew! He must know. I gave everything away! I’m so stupid! How could I do this to us?_

Olivia looked really worried and she sat me down.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, just breathe,” I heard her calming voice.

I tried to concentrate on my breathing, but it was as if my body was working against me. All I could think was – Bastien did something to Alana. Here. Bastien did something. Bastien was working for Tariq. Tariq, the man who did something to me. Olivia kept patting my back and as I started to feel better, I saw a pair of boots in front of me. I looked up to see Bastien’s face.

“Are you okay, Lady Ashley?” he asked, in a worried voice. I wanted to answer something snarky. Something so obvious, that he’d know. That he’d know I know. But I didn’t want to risk it, so I sighed out my frustrations.

“I think so.”

“Would you like a Xanax?” he asked.

“Bastien, why in the hell would you have Xanax in this place?” Olivia eyed him carefully. He seemed flustered at the question.

“What do you mean, Duchess? It’s in my first aid kit.”

“I’ve never heard of Xanax being in a first aid kit,” she said, crossing her arms. I could hear him swallow hard. He looked straight at Olivia.

“It is in mine, since I tend to feel anxious. Now I’ll be going to bed, we leave early tomorrow to catch up with everyone,” he said and walked in.

Olivia rolled her eyes and I smiled at her. After a while, just sitting in the comforting silence, Drake came outside, his nostrils flaring. _Oh, he was angry_. _Or irritated?_ It was hard to tell sometimes.

“What’s the matter with you?” he sneered at Olivia and his hands all over the place.

“What do you mean?” she smiled playfully at him. His gaze wavered. She had pierced through his icy exterior and he definitely was being way softer towards her than he would ever have been in the past. Drake sighed.

“Bastien is upset. He thinks you’re angry at him or something. He said you were accusatory, and he went to bed.”

“Did he seriously complain like a little…” Olivia tried to find the words.

“Like a what, Olivia?” Drake asked, looking straight at her, becoming more and more enraged as she kept talking.

“Like a rat,” she finished her sentence.

“Bastien isn’t a rat. What’s the matter with you? See, this is why this would never work. You can’t go call people rats just because they’re not up to your royal standards,” he sighed. She rolled her eyes. Hard. And pointed at me.

“I don’t treat Ashley that way!” she defended herself and he laughed.

“You mean, not anymore, because you got to know her. Before you did treat her like everyone else and you were a bitch, honestly,” he sighed quietly.

“Forget it, you wouldn’t understand.”

“Understand what? That you’re so very entitled? Oh yeah, I understand that very well,” he said and went into the cabin.

“Ashley… I.. Do I? Am I really that bad?” she sighed and sat next to me. I patted her back.

“Not as much anymore, no. You’ll get better.”

“Better?” she stared at me in disbelief.

“I mean, you already have started to treat people way better than before. I’m sure that in time you will be even better than now.”

“Ha! I don’t think so. Maybe Drake is right. I’m just… I don’t know who to trust, Ashley. The further we go, the less we know. It’s frustrating.”

“I know, but we can’t stop now. Honestly, we’re so close. So close. We’ll find the missing puzzle pieces.”

“Do you think Drake’s involved?” she whispered to me. I mulled it over for a while. _Could he? Could he actually be defending Bastien because he knew more than we did?_

“Honestly, no. I think he’s very naïve when it comes to things like these. He worships Bastien because he worked with his dad,” I sighed.

“I just hope he doesn’t get too hurt when everything blows up,” she sighed. I turned to take a look at her. There she was, vulnerable, sweet, thoughtful. Why couldn’t Drake see this Olivia? Why didn’t she open up to him like this? She actually cared. She really cared about him.

“So, do you think that you and Drake... could… maybe? In the future?” I wiggled my eyebrows playfully, so that she wouldn’t feel forced to answer seriously if she didn’t want to.

“I wish. I don’t… think so. This trip kind of proved it, didn’t it? We’re always at the opposite sides, we approach things differently and he hates royalty. He always has hated it, and I love being a Duchess. No one is going to change that about us,” her voice was filled with sadness. She sighed and I sighed, too. We didn’t talk, just enjoyed our silence. After a while, though, I started getting really tired, so we finally went to the bedroom that Bastien and Drake had prepared for us. The room was cosy, and every furniture item was made from delicate wood. So delicate, I didn’t want to even touch it. I quickly shoved all the clothes I had on onto my nightstand and got under the sheets. I didn’t even feel myself going cold before, but this felt great. I looked at Olivia, who stared silently at the room.

“What?”

“I feel like we’re being watched,” she whispered.

“Really? I just feel like going to bed,” I whispered back, looking around the room. There were no visible cameras. Was she being paranoid?

“You had an anxiety episode, I think you deserve your rest. I’m just going to have a quick look around,” she smiled at me.

“But wait, if there is something or someone watching, how are you going to disguise that?”

“Oh, everyone knows that I do this in every room I stay at, it isn’t out of character for me. I also always check the exits to make sure I can escape in five seconds or less.”

“If you say so,” I felt like sleep was overwhelming me.

“Sleep tight!” were the last words I heard that night.

______________

In the morning, I was woken up by a smell of baked goods. I opened my eyes, excited to wake up Olivia, but she wasn’t sleeping next to me in the huge bed. Suddenly panic overwhelmed me. Where was she? Was she outside already? I quickly got dressed and ran out of the room to see Bastien at the stove, cooking and smiling at me.

“Good morning, Lady Ashley. Did you sleep well?”

“Good morning. Have you seen Olivia by any chance?”

“No, I haven’t seen the Duchess since last night.”

“Oh.”

“If you want, I could help you look for her after I’m finished with breakfast,” he suggested.

“Oh no, thank you. I’m just going to go for a quick walk then. Just to clear my head, from last night, you know?” I smiled awkwardly and he nodded. I quickly grabbed my jacket and went outside. It had gotten very cold. It woke me up. As I walked around the fields, I realized that this must be a very lonely place. There were just fields all around me and then just forests. No roads were visible from here. It was beautiful, though. Depending on your stance, this could be heaven or hell. Or freedom. To Drake, probably, this meant freedom. Olivia probably would see this place as a curse. Yet, there was something about them. Something that felt right.

As I walked further, I noticed a figure, talking. I didn’t have anywhere to hide, so I kept walking towards it. I already knew it was Drake, his voice wasn’t easily mistaken for someone else. He was talking on the phone and as I approached, he quickly said his goodbyes.

“Hey,” he smiled at me.

“Hi.”

“Olivia’s probably sleeping under the bed,” he laughed.

“What?”

“She likes sleeping under the bed, she seems to think that the hardwood floors are good for her back, and she’d also be on high alert if someone would attack, but I just don’t believe it,” he said.

“Oh. I didn’t even think to check.”

“Of course you wouldn’t. The first time I did, I couldn’t believe it. When I was little, there were monsters under my bed, now there was Olivia,” he chuckled. I chuckled, too. We walked slowly back to the cabin but just before we walked in, I stopped Drake.

“Why are you here?”

“Here?”

“Why did you come back to Cordonia, with us? Why did you invite Olivia here?”

“Oh, well, I just thought it’d be nice to have company…”

“Yeah, keep telling yourself that. I’ll go indulge in some breakfast waffles,” I replied, walking into the little cabin. Olivia was already up, drinking her black coffee and looking dishevelled. It was the first time I saw her red hair in a messy bun and her being just a regular person.

“Why are you staring?”

“Did you sleep well?” I smirked.

“Oh, shut it, at least we were safe,” she said grumpily and took a sip from a coffee cup that had hundreds of little pink hearts on it.

“You were never in any danger here,” Bastien said, putting some waffles on a plate for me. I thanked him but Olivia just stared at him.

“You can never know,” she added.

“You can. You were staying with a royal bodyguard and a man, who was trained like a royal bodyguard. You were never in any real danger, could’ve slept next to Lady Ashley,” he sounded disappointed that Olivia didn’t seem to feel safe in his care. I didn’t either, but I kept to myself. He couldn’t know that we were onto him, not right now.

“Well, maybe she snores, and I didn’t want to sleep next to her.”

“Hey!”

“It’s alright, Duchess, you don’t need to explain yourself,” Bastien said, ending the conversation.

I glared at Olivia. _I don’t snore, how dare she say that?_

_______________________

It wasn’t too long before we were already back in Italy, in our train and exhausted from the flight. When we were back, Olivia told me that she actually found a gold bracelet with an “A” at the back of it. I couldn’t believe it at first, it seemed like a thing Bastien would take care of, if it really belonged to Alana. But my intuition said something else. I knew we had to do something, but I had no clue how. How could I accuse the former king of making sure I was “out” the picture?

Maxwell texted me to inform me that they were helping Hana get ready for her bachelorette party. When I read that, my heart sunk. Was the wedding THAT close? Are we running out of time? I inhaled and exhaled quickly until I could breathe normally again. Olivia was with me, helping me through it.

“They won’t get married,” she said encouragingly as she read the text from Maxwell.

“Well, maybe they should,” I confessed. And as I told my frustrations and my worries onto her, she laughed so hard.

“I’m glad my pain is so amusing to you,” I said sarcastically.

“Oh God, he loves you. Don’t you realize that by now? Whenever you’re around, he can’t stop staring, even some other people have noticed this. Why do you think Hana’s parents sent Noah to spy for them?”

“What?”

“Oh yeah, Noah was sent in to totally spy on you because you two aren’t believable.”

“What are you saying? What does this mean?”

“That you have to get your flirt on,” Olivia said, looking all smug.

“But…”

“I know you’re not feeling it, at least, not after last time, but just… suggest that all you’re looking for is some fun? Maybe he’ll get the hint.”

“Olivia!”

“What? A little fun never hurt anybody!”

There was a knock at the door and as I opened it, I had the urge to shut it back.

“Greetings, Lady Ashley, Duchess,” Bertrand bowed. We both crossed our arms and he quickly closed the door behind him, clearly nervous.

“Well?” I stared him up and down.

“Was my performance believable?”

“Believable? What? ” I stared at him in shock. Was this just… for show?

“Yes, I was the one that sent in the pictures and tried to get money, but believe me, I didn’t do that because it was a fun thing to do. Our house was literally in ruins and I saw you as a cash cow and for that I will be terribly sorry. I didn’t want to betray the royalty but what is royalty worth if I can’t afford to even pay my workers a decent salary? ” he sighed.

“So the…”

“Yes, the things I said after was to get you angry and for the people to think there’s a rift in House Beaumont, so that I could gain the trust of the people who work against you.”

“Did that work?” I was surprised. So he did like me?

“Yes, actually. Noah came forward after the dinner and told me a few interesting things,” Bertrand smirked.

“Oh, we already know he’s here to spy for Hana’s parents, ” Olivia rolled her eyes.

“Did you know that he’s also instructed to make sure there’s no threat to the “happy” couple?”

“What does that even mean?” I asked, looking at the both of them.

“That if you’re a threat to Hana’s and Liam’s marriage, he’s here to take you out,” Olivia gasped.

“Wait, no, that couldn’t be true.”

“He told me this himself that he’s glad that he won’t have you eliminate you, because you seem like a fairly nice girl,” as Bertrand kept talking and him and Olivia coming up with a game plan, I just stood there. I couldn’t believe it. What? He was instructed to kill me if I was a threat? My heart sunk. I wasn’t good at reading people, was I? Olivia stepped out for a while, and Bertrand patted my back.

“We’re going to make sure you’re safe, you know.”

“How?”

“Olivia went to tell Liam and Hana, and then she’s going to get a few more bodyguards to make sure nothing happens.”

“What if it does?”

“It will not, I will personally make sure of it. Also, he did mention that he fancies you, but you’ve always seemed distant,” Bertrand shrugged. I was distant. Of course, I was, Liam was the only one I wanted.

“I’m not saying that you should do anything, but you could definitely use some of your womanly wiles to make him forget what he’s here for,” Bertrand smirked.

“Bertrand!”

“What? If he’s distracted, he won’t be able to think about anything else,” Bertrand sighed. When Olivia came back, she agreed with Bertrand.

“He’s an assassin, Ashley. A real-life assassin, hired by Hana’s parents, my informants just told me,” she went pale. Well, even paler than she was before.

“This means that…”

“Mr. and Mrs. Lee are willing to go very far for what they want,” Olivia sighed.

There was a small knock on the door. Then a louder one.

I opened the door to see Maxwell and Sarah, smiling there.

“MOMMYYY,” she hugged my leg and I hugged her back.

“Sweetheart!”

“We have some ideas for Hana’s bachelorette party!” she exclaimed happily. I turned to Olivia and Bertrand. Both of them went with an “ _aah_!”

“Ideas?”

“Those two didn’t tell you? Everyone has to pick out an activity to do with Hana for her bachelorette party, we came in with some ideas,” Maxwell smiled. I groaned. How was I supposed to help throw a great bachelorette party for a friend who was about to marry the love of my life?


	30. The Bachelorette Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Hana's bachelorette party! Will it go over smoothly or will the party be a bust?

Before heading out to the bachelor and bachelorette parties, everyone had to gather at the ballroom to hear a toast from both families and their friends. I was nervous, but I knew what I had to do. I looked in my compact mirror and looked at my face. I’ve never had so much makeup on me in my entire life. This was the first time I’ve ever had my face contoured and highlighted, I looked like one of the models in a fashion magazine. I couldn’t stop staring. Even Sarah was in awe, she held my hand the whole limo ride. When I stepped out of the limo, I smiled at all of the paparazzi and journalists that were documenting the event. Some were even whistling while I was walking by. Olivia helped me pick a dress – it was a diamond encrusted long, red dress, which complimented every curve. I had never had so much cleavage showing the entire time I was here, the slit on the dress also went extremely high up my leg. I didn’t feel as comfortable in it, but I knew that I had to dazzle Noah. He had to think I’m over Liam for good.

“Lady Ashley and Lady Sarah,” I heard my name being announced and I walked in with Sarah, hand in hand. She was wearing a tiny red dress, matching mine, with some diamonds on it. I heard a few gasps and wows from across the room as I was walking. While I was searching for Noah’s face, I noticed Liam just staring at me in awe, I smiled shyly, trying not to stare back. When I finally saw Noah, it seemed like he enjoyed me looking at him, because he winked at me. Sarah pulled me in Olivia’s direction. Maxwell came behind us and greeted us happily.

“We’ll you’ve done it, everyone is talking about how amazing and gorgeous you both look. Madeleine is a bit upset because she was hoping to be the talk of the town today,” Maxwell laughed.

“But Madeleine’s dresses are always so plain!” Sarah interjected and I gasped at her. Was this really my daughter saying this?

“That’s what I always say! She’s too plain for her own good,” he rolled his eyes.

“Okay, you spend way too much time with Maxwell,” I laughed.

“We have the same fashion sense,” she laughed with me.

I kept looking around and as Madeleine passed me, she scoffed. I smiled right back at her. She actually did look plain in her white gown. Olivia shoved me a little towards Noah, who was standing beside a table with appetizers on it.

“Go get me something to eat,” she said.

“There’s a waiter walking around every minute, bringing something,” I teased but I nodded, realizing I needed Noah to flirt with me. It was helpful to imagine that Liam didn’t exist. I saw him with the corner of my eye, still straight right at me as I came closer and closer to Noah.

“Lady Ashley,” Noah murmured quietly in his deep voice. He looked at me like a hunter looks at his prey and honestly, it scared me a little. But I had to pretend I wanted to be his prey.

“Yes?”

“You look incredible tonight,” he smiled. I nodded.

“That was the whole point,” I made a pose in front of him, and made sure he noticed how big the slit was from the dress.

“I don’t understand you at all.”

“Oh? How so?”

“One minute you look interested, the other you run away. It’s like that song, you’re hot and then you’re cold.”

“But isn’t that a part of my charm?” I smirked at him. He took a step closer and my heart started pounding even faster. What was he going to do?

“You ARE very charming, ” he whispered in my ear so slowly that it tickled. I giggled a little. When I looked across the room, I noticed Liam staring at us, again. His eyes looked dark and angry, and I wasn’t too happy to do this, but it was a thing that had to be done. I had to make Noah forget that I was a threat.

“The King doesn’t seem to happy that you’re here with me,” he smiled, also noticing Liam’s death stare.

“So? He was the one who didn’t choose me at the coronation.”

“Oh, a little feisty, are we?”

“No, I’m actually pissed,” I said with such conviction. I was, in fact, pissed but not at Liam. At everyone who contributed to this situation. That I can’t just be with him, just right off the bat. That we had to play the game like everybody else.

“How about we make him a little more pissed?”

“What did you have in mind?” as I asked, he took my hand and lead me outside of the ballroom. Everyone stared at us leaving, even Madeleine, but Noah seemed like he had no care in the world. I tried to find Liam with my eyes, but we were walking so quickly, it wasn’t possible.

“This,” he said as we breathed in the fresh air. The paparazzi and journalists were gone, there was no speech to listen to. I exhaled loudly.

“What? The room was too stuffy for you, too?”

“Of course, the royals are tiring,” I smiled.

“I’m so glad you said so,” he stood in front of me. As I looked into his eyes, I knew what was going to happen. And I didn’t stop it, not this time. He got closer and closer, and I looked into his eyes. They were so brown and intense. He put his lips on mine softly, but then forced his tongue inside me. I just let it happen, and I tensed a little. I think he felt that, so he grabbed my waist and I held onto him, as if I was holding onto life itself. I was surprised at how tender he was. He treated me like a china doll. I was expecting something more fierce, passionate. Noah pinned me softly against the wall and looked me over.

“Just… wow,” he smiled, and I couldn’t help but smile shyly. I couldn’t believe that this was happening right now. That the love of my life is listening to some boring speeches while I was being kissed here… by this assassin. He was attractive, but my heart wasn’t in it. Noah started kissing me again, this time with more passion. I felt his hands on my thigh and I opened my eyes to actually see him. It didn’t feel real before, but now it did.

With the corner of my eye, I saw Liam walking slowly from the ballroom. He saw me and his face turned red and angry. _Uh-oh._ _Fuck._

“What are you two doing?” Liam asked as Noah had started kissing my neck. Noah turned his head in surprise. I felt like a little kid caught up in something they shouldn’t have done.

“Oh, hello, King Liam. Just enjoying ourselves, like people do,” he smiled as he pointed at me with his head.

“Hana’s expecting you,” Liam said in a monotone voice.

“She is?” I looked at him and couldn’t help but feel guilty.

“Yeah, she said her parents are about to give a speech through a videocall, and she wanted her best friend AND Maid of Honor to be there,” he sighed.

”Some best friend, marrying her ex,” Noah said and smirked. _Ooh, he wanted to get under Liam’s skin._

“We are an unconventional bunch,” Liam answered and stared Noah down.

“Okay, I have to go to have a conversation with Mr and Mrs Lee anyway. Find me later,” Noah said, when he slowly let me go and grazed his hand against my thigh. I nodded and smiled at him as he left.

When he was out of earshot, Liam stared at me in disbelief and I didn’t know what to say. But realistically, what could I really say? I didn’t start kissing him. I did get all dolled up, but I didn’t think that Noah would act this fast.

“Ashley, I…” he started, and I crossed my arms. Not because I was angry, I just felt extremely uncomfortable.

“Ashley, I love you and I know this isn’t fun for you, but … I can’t handle it, when I see you with him. It feels like torture, everything in me goes crazy and I want to punch him out,” he reached out and touched my cheek. _Was he serious?_

“Oh, and you think it’s so fun for me to watch you with my best friend, preparing for your wedding, talking to each other’s parents, realizing that maybe you two are actually meant to be?” I said angrily, letting out all the frustrations that had been building up inside of me these last few months. Liam took me by the hand and turned me around the corner, so that no one could creep up on the conversation and he stared right at me.

“What are you even saying?”

“That it’s not fun for me either. I know how it looks, but it would be a bit suspicious if I was the one who pulled away from the kiss, after telling everyone how happy I am for you both?” I stared right at Liam, who looked at the ground.

“But I am not kissing Hana in front of people.”

“I wasn’t kissing him in front of everyone, either. He pulled me here, you were the one who walked in,” I said and a silence followed. I could see him thinking over everything I just told him.

“You do realize that I am not going to marry Hana?” he smiled at me.

“No.”

“What?”

“You heard what I said. I think that there’s a chance that you might have to. And if it happens, I will probably have to get over it,” I sighed, feeling frustrated, and as I did, he grabbed my face and pulled me into a passionate kiss. A kiss so overwhelming, I actually felt woozy after. I actually felt butterflies in my stomach all around. I felt lost in him, in the moment. He grabbed me by the shoulders and pushed me against the wall and started nibbling on my ear. I moaned softly.

“You’re mine. Promise me that you won’t kiss him again,” Liam demanded and I looked into his blue eyes.

“You know I can’t promise that,” as I said the words, he started kissing me, even more passionately than before and his hands were on my neck, squeezing it a little. It was surprisingly arousing.

“You’re mine,” he whispered.

“I’m yours,” I repeated.

“If he touches you again, he won’t know what’s coming for him,” he whispered into my ear and walked slowly away. I stood there, amazed. Was that really Liam? My Liam? The one who’s always so nice and calm? I felt so hot and bothered, so I had to take a minute to catch my breath and check my compact mirror.

___________________

After I listened to all the speeches and made my own inspiring speech about how Hana was an amazing person and I’d be lost without her, we walked to the limos. Maxwell took Sarah again; so that I could enjoy the bachelorette party, even though, I was ready to go to bed already.

“Don’t you want to enjoy the bachelor party?”

“If the girls aren’t there, it isn’t much of a party, is it?” he smiled. I nodded. At least me and Olivia had something fun planned.

Madeleine took us all to a fancy dinner, and honestly, it was awkward. We were all sitting at the dinner table, eating our fancy oysters and other fancy appetizers I didn’t know the names of.

“You’re a countess and this is all that you could’ve scored?” Olivia sneered and Madeleine ignored her comment.

“Are the oysters good? Are you enjoying yourself?” she kept asking Hana while Hana just nodded and agreed to everything she was saying. When the dinner ended, Olivia shouted: “finally!” and we all slowly started walking towards our limos. Hana stopped me and invited me to ride with her. I accepted and as we sat down, it felt strange. Like there was this coldness between us and I knew it was my own fault. I smiled at her, ignoring the awkwardness.

“I’m sorry if it seems like I’ve been avoiding you,” she apologized as she looked outside the window. I started laughing uncomfortably and she stared right at me.

“It’s a bit funny. I was the one actually avoiding you.”

“What? You were?”

“Yup. And I’m so sorry Hana. I never wanted to hurt you, but it was…”

“Hard. I know. I get it, I even started avoiding Maxwell, where possible. We text all the time, but real life seems surreal now, you know? ” Hana added.

“I always wanted to talk to you about this, but it seemed…”

“Inappropriate?”

“Yes! Especially since it was my idea and all…” I looked at the driver. I was a bit paranoid, so I tried not to make the conversation too obvious.

“Well, don’t you worry. There’s nothing going on between us,” Hana whispered at me.

“I know, I know.”

“We sleep in separate rooms, you know,” she added.

“Oh?”

“Be careful with Noah, though,” she warned, and I stared back at her. Did she know already?

“Why?”

“He just seems shady,” Hana squeezed my arm as she said this. We finally arrived at our destination. It was a nightclub.

“Welcome to “Diamond”, one of the most prestigious night clubs around. This is from me and Penelope,” Kiara said and both girls squirmed excitedly. Hana smiled and thanked them. Olivia kept her distance and I stayed at the back with her. Madeleine came out of her limo and scoffed when she saw me.

“You both could be conjoined twins, attached at the hip, it’s a little sad, really,“ she said as she joined the other girls.

“Like she doesn’t look a little sad in that dress. Maybe her only chance to wear white,” Olivia retorted, and I elbowed her.

“What?”

“It’s not nice.”

“I know, that’s why I said it!” she said and laughed. I couldn’t help myself but laugh, too.

When we walked into the nightclub, it was very dark, filled with pop music, smelled like sweat. Kiara lead us upstairs, where a table was already waiting for us.

“What will you all have? I’ll go tell the bartender,” Penelope looked at all of us excitedly.

“Why don’t you surprise us, Penelope?” Hana asked.

“If she returns with anything that is either dog or poodle shaped, I swear to God..” Olivia said and I elbowed her gently, but all the other ladies had a quick laugh. It WAS a funny joke, but still… didn’t feel like she deserved it.

As we waited for Penelope to come back, a dark figure approached us and it took me a while to realize that it was Noah, until he turned around and looked at me, again, like a hunter looks at his prey. It made me feel uncomfortable. Did he follow us here?

He danced his way onto our table and all the girls were as confused as I was.

“Don’t you have Liam’s bachelor party to attend?” Olivia sneered.

“I wasn’t invited. Guess me and the groom really aren’t that close,” he smirked at her and looked me up and down.

“I hope you realize that this is a bachelorette party,” Madeleine interrupted their conversation.

“I do. And I hope sweet little Hana lets me crash hers. I am an old friend, after all,” he smiled sweetly at her. Hana looked at the floor, not saying anything.

“Hana? Tell this creep to leave,” Olivia said.

“He… he can stay,” she said, sounding defeated.

“Good girl,” he smiled at her.

“Hey, who’s this? A stripper?” Penelope said as she returned with a tray full of shots.

“No, just some creeper,” Olivia added, smiling.

“What are those?” Noah asked, looking at the shots.

“Jagerbombs! The bartender said that these were the real deal for a bachelorette party. I don’t know what the real deal means, but they look good!” she smiled nicely.

We all took a shot of it and she just stared at Noah expectantly.

“Well, aren’t you going to dance?” she asked him, and we all got confused. Then I realized that the music was so loud, she actually still maybe thought that he could be a stripper. A smile escaped my lips.

“For you, anytime,” he gave her a big smile, took her by the hand, while still keeping his eyes on me and lead her on the dancefloor. I rolled my eyes. Was he showing off for me? Really? I didn’t even look at them dance, I turned to Olivia and the girls, we just laughed. It was so bizarre.

After a while, Hana took me confidently by the hand.

“Come dance with me.”

“What?”

“Oh, come on, Ashley, it’s my bachelorette party,” she pouted. How could I say no? I turned to Olivia and mouthed that I’m sorry. I had left her at the table with the two lovebirds – Madeleine and Kiara, both of them were just glancing at each other shyly.

When we are at the dancefloor, Hana started busting out some moves, I was shocked. She was good. She was really the master of all crafts. She moved her body closer to mine, so close that we intertwined. She grinded up next to me and I gasped.

“Whaaaat?” Hana laughed.

“I didn’t know you had it in you,” I giggled.

“It’s the Jagerbombs,” she said shyly.

“I like THIS Hana,” I nodded and kept dancing. As our bodies touched again, I knew Noah was watching me like a hawk. I felt slightly uncomfortable, but this was for Hana. She needed to let loose.

“UGH. CAN I JOIN YOU?” Olivia was shouting through the music. Hana playfully nodded at her and took her hand so that she’d be closer to us. Olivia rolled her eyes.

“He’s watching you,” she said.

“I know.”

“What’s your gameplan?”

“I don’t know, he moves too fast,” I shrugged. Olivia gasped at me. I realized she misunderstood and probably thought we did something else, so I just kept laughing, while she stood there in shock, in the middle of the dancefloor.

“Dance, Olivia!” Hana grinded up against her.

“Okay, okay, but just.. not too close, okay?”

“It’s a party!” Hana objected and pulled out her pouty face again. Olivia had no choice but to give in. When I walked back to the table, to take another shot, Madeleine and Kiara were gone. _They’re probably making out in the bathroom or something_ , I thought, and the thought just made me giggle.

I took a quick shot of a Jagerbomb and as I turned around to go back to my friends, a dark figure stopped me.

“Enjoying yourself?”

“As much as you have, apparently,” I smiled politely at him.

“That girl sure can talk about poodles,” he sighed.

“Yeah, but she’s lovely.”

“That’s one word to describe her. Do you want to go? ” he pointed at the exit. I shook my head no and he looked surprised. I bet he was, since I was pretending not to be into Liam.

“I don’t bite. Well, just a little,” he said, trying to sound seductive.

“No thanks, I’m here celebrating a bachelorette party.”

“That hurts, I thought we were going somewhere,” for the first time he actually looked sincere.

“Hot and cold, remember?” I said, walking away.

____________

When I finally gathered all of the girls, me and Olivia took them to a recently opened amusement park. It had closed an hour before, but no one said no to Olivia, especially when she had the money to back up her big mouth. We had the park all to ourselves. Hana gasped.

“You guys! It’s all for me?”

“Of course it is, you deserve the best,” I said and honestly, I meant it. She deserved to have so much fun after everything she had endured from her parents for the last few decades. We went on all the rides – the ferris wheel, the pendulum, the drop tower. We even convinced Madeleine to ride on the rollercoaster with us, she really didn’t want to, but Hana pouted again. It was her magic trick of the evening. We were all screaming from excitement, except Olivia, who, of course, said it was child’s play. When we got out, we drove bumper cars and I kept bumping into Penelope. She didn’t know how to steer it, so everyone had to bump into her. It was way more fun that it sounds and at the end of the day, we all scattered. Olivia was teaching Penelope how to ride a bumper car properly, while Kiara and Madeleine were off giggling somewhere, probably enjoying that no one was watching them, and me and Hana were just walking around the little food stands, where all the vendors were waiting for us to order something.

“What should I choose? This has way too much sugar in it,” Hana sighed as she looked at the caramel popcorn.

“Who cares? You should enjoy today,” I smiled as I ordered the caramel popcorn for her. She looked extremely grateful for that and we walked away from the vendors so that they wouldn’t overhear our conversation.

“I’m so sorry, Ashley. This should have been your bachelorette party, not mine. I feel like a fraud doing all of this,” she sighed. She really seemed upset and I didn’t want her to be.

“Hana, stop. This is not your fault, so don’t even think about that. I actually wanted to talk to you.”

“Oh?”

“It’s about Noah,” and I told her everything. She had to take a seat on the nearby bench as I told her everything. She stared at me.

“Oh my god… I’ve endangered you. I … Ashley, you have to know, I had nothing to do with my parents and I..” she said, and she started shaking. I shook my head again. Why was she apologizing for what her parents were doing?

“No. You have to know – you are not your parents. You didn’t do this, believe me, I know. I just thought you should know.”

“You were right. And again, I would…”

“Never. I know. I never thought you were involved.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Stop!”

After a few minutes of consoling and talking it all out, a limo took us back to our train. Noah was leaning against the wall of my room.

“Can I help you?” I asked.

“I really don’t get you.”

“Don’t get what?”

“You’re hot for me and then you’re not. Is it Liam? Is he bothering you?”

“No,” I lied.

“What is it then?”

“I just want to have fun and be flirty. I don’t want to involved or do anything I’ll regret. Again,” I sighed, as if this all was true.

“Oh, c’mon, you can have _fun_ with me,” he whispered and touched my face. I leaned into his touch. I didn’t want to, but his hands were so warm and I got a little cold from the amusement park.

“I don’t do casual _fun_ ,” I looked into his eyes.

“Okay, okay, I got it. But let me at least say goodnight?”

“Good night!” I smiled and when I was about to turned around, I felt Noah grab me close to him. He hugged me tight. So tight, he even squeezed me. Then he looked into my hands and pressed his lips softly against mine.

“I can play nice, too.”

“Good,” I smiled. I didn’t hate the way he treated me. And I hated that I didn’t hate it. _Focus, Ashley!_

He watched me as I went into my room.

I turned on the light and was surprised to see Sarah sleeping in her bed, but Maxwell and Liam were sleeping on the floor. First Olivia, now these two. Did the royals of Cordonia not understand the concept of a bed? I smiled as I shook my head and woke up Liam softly, to make him sleep in my bed.

“How was the bachelorette party?” Liam asked.

“Good. Very good, actually. Got to talk to Hana and also establish some boundaries with Noah, so that’s a win,” I smiled but Liam groaned.

”But you’re mine!”

“Liam,” I looked sternly at him.

“I know, I know, everyone has to think you’re over me. God, when it became so messed up?” he covered his face with his hands in frustration.

 _When I found out that you’re the Prince of Cordonia_ , I thought.

I crawled into bed next to Liam. He caressed my thigh slowly and we both sighed. This was hard. But I didn’t even want to think how hard it will be telling Liam and Drake that their father-figures conspired against me. _Yeah, like that’ll go over well._


	31. Two surprises and a fashion show

“Good morning sleepyhead!” Maxwell’s voice echoed through the small room. I groaned and threw a pillow in his direction.

“Ha! You missed. Wakey, wakey, Ashley,” he teased.

“I don’t wanna wake up,” I sighed as I opened my eyes when I felt Sarah’s little arms pull me up.

“But mommy, we’re almost in Paris!” she said happily. I looked at the window instinctively. I stood up and quickly walked to the tiny bathroom to get ready, wondering how Liam slipped out. I never felt anything even move, it felt as if I was knocked out.

“Mommy, hurry up! You promised to have a nice breakfast with me!”

“One second!”

”I hope you’re … oh wow, mommy!” Sarah exclaimed as she looked at me when I finally exited the bathroom. I had on some skinny jeans, long, black boots, a striped shirt, and a dark navy blazer, hair up in a neat bun, but the final touch, of course, was my red lipstick and mascara. I felt like sprucing up for mine and Sarah’s private little event. Even if it was just having coffee and a babyccino, and some croissants at the local café. It was a big event for the both of us, as I promised her some private time after all of the “adventures” I have been having.

“Looking very Parisian, Ashley,” Maxwell nodded at me. I nodded back. When we finally arrived in Paris, Sarah and Maxwell were basically glued to the window of the train car.

“Woooow,” both of them said as we stopped. I giggled because it was cute. The amazement on both of them. I actually envied that. Sometimes I wanted that childlike innocence for me, too. Life would certainly be much easier.

I took Sarah by the hand and we practically ran outside, waving everyone goodbyes. It was so freeing, to know that the morning is reserved just for us. Maxwell made sure we knew where the best cafes were, he gave us a whole list and a map. We just walked, hand in hand, laughing and basking in our newfound freedom.

“We should do this every day!”

“I know!” I said excitedly as both of us kept walking, trying to look for a café that wasn’t too full, where we both could enjoy our beverages.

“Hey! There’s a nice one!” Sarah pointed to one of the cafes with a big pink tulip on the sign.

“Hey, it looks like a great one. Thank you, mermaid girl,” I ruffled her hair and we walked straight into it. I was prepared, I knew that the Parisians didn’t like Americans too much, so I googled what means what in French, and I now had a prepared written list and handed it to the lady standing behind the counter. She smiled and nodded, and as she was preparing drinks, I sat down next to Sarah at the closest table.

“Soo, what’s up?” I asked her, as I saw her head drop.

“Nothing.”

“Hey… You know you can tell me anything, right?”

“I just miss you. A lot. I know you’re busy, but I feel sad that we won’t be doing this for a while again,” she exhaled. I moved closer to her so that I could hug her with one hand. Our little bubble was broken. In New York, it was just me and her vs the world but here, in the royal world, it was way too complicated than it had to be.

“Oh, babe. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to be this way. We will definitely do more stuff together, okay?” I winked at her and that seemed to cheer her up. My heart hung so heavy. _My little mermaid girl, my little butterfly._ I never thought that royal life would make her feel neglected. Honestly, it felt like it’d be more like me and Liam spending much more time with her. I sighed and the lady brought us our drinks and chocolate croissants. I smiled at her as I wanted to thank her in French.

“I do speak English, by the way,” she smiled at us and left. I looked at Sarah and both of us giggled at the revelation. Both of us shared our worries and happenings. Sarah shared everything that was going on in her schooling and about her teachers, while I shared the things I could actually talk about.

For just a tiny moment everything was good, normal even, and I didn’t have to think about assassins, traitors, or anything for that matter. It was just me and her, like the good old days. New York style.

When we were done, we saw Drake entering the small little café and he smiled at the girl behind the counter. She handed him a huge bag, he wanted to pay but she didn’t let him.

“Drake?” I called and he turned to me, in shock.

“Oh hey. Didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Clearly,” I said, and he blushed. It felt awkward. So awkward that when we exited the café

“Is that lady your girlfriend?” Sarah asked. Drake laughed it off.

“No. Noooo, definitely not. She was a friend of my sisters. She bakes the best pastries in the world and whenever I’m here, she tells me to come by and she gives me these,” he showed us the content of the bag she gave him: cinnamon buns and chocolate croissants that smelled so good, I wanted to take some right then and there.

“Fabiano, I see the way you’re drooling. Take some,” he smiled and handed us the big cinnamon rolls. Sarah basically chomped on hers.

“Isn’t that Maxwell?” Sarah pointed at Maxwell, who was walking beside a lady with a baby carriage. The lady was covering herself with a black scarf so we couldn’t see her face and she was looking around nervously. Maxwell, of course, was being carefree as always. I couldn’t stop staring at a baby carriage. Was this lady his friend? Was this something else? Is he a father? I gasped and looked at Drake and Sarah.

“Mommy, do we go on a mission?”

“Oh, definitely. I want to know more about this lady,” I said, curious.

“Oh no. You really want to know about the poor girl that Maxwell knocked up?”

“You don’t?” I gasped.

“Only because I have nothing better to do right now,” he sighed and followed me and Sarah, who were on the move already, silently. What amazed me was Maxwell’s laid-back behavior. He seemed to be ready to parade this woman to the world, but no one knew. Heck, I didn’t even know, and I considered him my brother.

We walked behind him, and he didn’t look back. Not even once. The lady next to him didn’t either, but she seemed stressed, fidgety even. She did look around occasionally. So she was the one afraid of people seeing her.

As we moved in closer, someone shouted: “Hey Savannah” and I stood in my tracks. Savannah? Wasn’t that the name of Drake’s sister? I turned to Drake, who looked shell-shocked. The pair kept walking and I looked over at Drake. He looked so angry, he was boiling with rage.

“Savannah? Savannah Walker?” he shouted so loudly that everyone could hear him. Savannah and Maxwell, too. They stopped and Savannah shakily turned around.

“Drake?” she muttered as she removed the scarf. Sarah held onto my hand so tight, I thought it was going to pop off.

“Uh-oh,” the sound came from Maxwell.

“Uh-oh is right Maxwell. You knew I wanted to find my sister and yet, you knew where she was hiding. You knew all along. And also, a baby, really, Maxwell? ” Drake stared at both of them and you could tell that this revelation startled him. I put my hand on his shoulder to calm him down. It seemed to help. Also, Sarah hugged Drake. I looked around and people were staring at us. Of course, they were because we were causing a scene.

“C’mon Drake, let’s go, we’ll get an explanation later,” I whispered but he shook his head.

“I want an explanation now, then I’ll leave.”

“Okay, but not here, c’mon this way,” Savannah said in a very soft voice and ushered us to an apartment building nearby. Drake looked at me quizzically.

“You don’t have to be a part of this drama if you don’t want to,” he sighed.

“Are you kidding? Of course we want to hear the end of this crazy mission,” I said.

“Yeah, and I wanna play with the baby!” Sarah exclaimed and we started walking up the stairs.

“Okay, we’re inside, now start talking,” Drake said as soon as he stepped into the tiny apartment.

“Hello to you too, big brother.”

“Don’t big brother me,” he sighed.

The baby started crying, so Savannah went to him.

“I need to change him, wait a minute.”

“Can I come, please?” Sarah begged. She loved all things babies, so she didn’t want to miss this, of course. When Savannah nodded, Sarah hugged me excitedly.

“A baby!”

“I knooow!” I said, laughing. We both were so obsessed with babies and even in clothing stores, we checked out the baby section first, showing the cutest tiniest clothes to each other.

“Look Drake, I’m so sorry about not telling you anything. But Savannah asked me not to. Also, I’m not the father of the baby, as one might think,” Maxwell admitted, and I felt relief wash over me. So he wasn’t having this secret life behind our backs. Well, not as much.

“If you’re not the father, then who… Oh, don’t tell me. No. NO!” Drake said as he was shaking his head.

“Can I play with the baby on the floor?” I heard Sarah beg and Savannah tell her to be very careful. She finally stepped out of the room and smiled at me.

“Kids, huh?” she smiled, and I nodded. Kids indeed.

“Savannah, don’t tell me that Bertrand is the father of your baby?” Drake was angry. But Savannah just hugged him. And they stood still for a while. The sibling embrace. It even made me miss my own siblings. When Savannah finally pulled away from Drake, she smiled.

“Yes. Yes, Bertrand is the father. I even named our son Bartie, to honor his grandfather – Barthelemy Beaumont,” she exhaled loudly.

“Can you just tell me why I wasn’t in the loop and HE is?” Drake pointed at Maxwell.

“You were always the protective big brother. I was scared. Scared for myself, and scared that you’ll beat up Bertrand, honestly. I wanted out of the royal life, since I realized I will never fit in. I never had a chance. I was obsessed with Bertrand and the night I left, I tried to tell him that I’m pregnant, but he went on and on about honor and House Beaumont, I just knew that I had to go. Me or my child never stood a chance against House Beaumont. And while I was getting my things and bawling my eyes out, I ran into Maxwell and I kind of exploded and told him everything, and he’s been helping. A lot. With this whole thing and all the baby clothes, the food, the utility bills. Just so I could be a present mom to my little one. I can’t thank him enough,” she sighed as she looked at Maxwell.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” he suddenly sounded shy. I arched my eyebrow at him.

“Nonsense Maxwell, to me that was everything. And he did it so that I could be a full-time mom and not worry about finances and money. So we’ve been keeping in contact. And honestly, I’d like that with you, too,” she looked at her brother, who stood still there, unconvinced. I couldn’t blame him, if my little sister did that, I’d be pissed, too. Sad and angry.

“Mooooom, the baby’s diaper stinks again,” Sarah screamed from the other room and Savannah stood up immediately to go to him.

“Actually, we have a fashion show to get to,” I checked my phone.

“Oh yeah, we gotta go,” Drake stood up and I stared at him.

“Really? You don’t even like fashion,” I looked his outfit up and down.

“What? It’s a really nice jean jacket,” Drake sighed in frustration.

“I think you and your sister have a lot of catching up to do. And we should leave you be, isn’t that right, Maxwell?”

“Oh yes, of course. Let me just say goodbye to my little nephew,” Maxwell flashed his grin at us and went into the room with Savannah.

“I know what you’re doing Fabiano,” Drake said.

“I have no clue what you mean,” I replied quickly, said goodbye to Savannah and little Bartie, and off we went. I knew Drake had to have his private time with his sister. Being a single parent wasn’t easy, and I had help. I didn’t want to know how it would be if I was doing it absolutely alone, without my parents or sister, who were top-notch babysitters.

“Our chariot awaits,” Maxwell exclaimed when he saw the black limo park near us.

The ride to the fashion show was pretty quiet since I didn’t know what to say. Or rather what not to say. I had so many questions. Bertrand was a father and had no clue! I knew it wasn’t my secret to tell, but it was hard. I would want to know, in his place. And his brother knew… I looked at Maxwell. He could really keep a secret, huh?

When we arrived, all I saw was flashing lights. We quickly exited the car and ran for the red carpet, where people were waiting for us.

“Finally, I was worried you wouldn’t show up,” I heard Bertrand’s voice behind us.

“Sorry for being late. We got… held up with … stuff,” I said as I looked at Maxwell who nodded.

“Held up with stuff?” he arched his eyebrow.

“Oh you know, me and Sarah were at the café and got carried away with talking and stuff. Girly things, as always,” I smiled.

“And I played with your son!” Sarah said excitedly and I froze in horror. Bertrand stared at us with a surprised look and Maxwell ushered us inside the building.

“I’ll do the damage control,” he sighed. When we got inside, Sarah looked sadly at me.

“Sorry, I forgot it was a secret! I heard you talking, and I thought… he’d like to know he had a cute tiny baby!”

“Oh, it’s quite alright, I think. It was time he knew,” I hugged her. And I really believed that. I had enough of everyone’s secrets. So I realized that I had to tell Liam and Drake about everything I witnessed. And in my heart, I knew they would believe me.

“Ladies, ladies, please go this way,” a man started ushering people around and when he saw us, he opened the door for us into a room with a “Models” sign on the door.

“We’re obviously not models,” I said, laughing. The man rolled his eyes and he looked very annoyed, so we just entered anyway.

Hana, Kiara, and Penelope were already there, talking and giggling.

“Oh, finally!” Hana said, happily, when she saw us.

“What’s going on here?” Sarah asked suspiciously.

“Didn’t Bertrand explain anything to you beforehand?” Kiara asked nonchalantly.

“We really didn’t have the time to actually talk,” I confessed.

“We’re not just watching the fashion show, we’re IN the fashion show! This is the best thing ever!” Penelope sounded extremely excited.

“Wait, what?” I stared at them. I didn’t know a thing about modeling. Or being in a fashion show.

“No worries, I believe you’ll be a natural,” Hana smiled encouragingly.

“If you say so,” I sighed and checked out the outfits on the racks. I didn’t know why this made me nervous. I was already wearing all these fancy royal outfits almost every day, but this somehow felt a lot different than anything I had ever done before. It made my legs feel like jelly. I looked at Sarah who was running the whole room, with no care in the world. I wished I had this mentality still as I looked around the bright room.

“Hey, are you okay?” Hana smiled as she approached me.

“Oh… I don’t know. It’s just the lights and the people seeing me and… I don’t know, it’s a bit overwhelming,” I confessed.

“It’s a lot like walking the red carpet and you’ve done that well plenty of times,” she smiled encouraging me, and I agreed. Why yes. Yes, I have, and proudly, in fact.

I heard the door open and finally, Madeleine and Olivia entered. They both were wearing exquisite silver colored silk dresses that showed off every curve of their bodies. You could see that the outfits were made specifically with their measurements in mind since both of them had vastly different body types. Olivia was taller, but she had more curves, and Madeleine was a lot skinnier, yet the dress showed off her curves, too.

“Wow,” Hana whispered as we appreciated their look.

“Thanks, girls,” Olivia smirked.

“Now it’s Penelope’s and Kiara’s turn,” Madeleine said quietly, and the girls walked to the door.

“Will I be in the fashion show, too?” Sarah asked as she turned to the girls.

“I think so, I saw a super special outfit that was way too tiny for any of us to wear,” Olivia winked at Sarah, who was so excited, that she couldn’t stop jumping up and down.

It was quite a loud moment until Penelope and Kiara reappeared, now dressed in black mesh tops, black short tulle skirts, and a pair of black, elegant boots.

“Wow, what a nice top,” Hana touched the sleeve of Penelope’s top.

“It’s actually a bodysuit, I love this, I feel so rock’n’roll, so different than what I usually wear!” Penelope smiled at us and did a little twirl.

“You’re next,” Kiara smiled at me and Hana. What had the designer in store for us? Hana quickly lead us up to a purple door, where a man was standing. He was dressed in a navy blazer, very chic, very Parisian and by his accent, you could already tell that he was, in fact, French.

“Lady Hana, so happy to see you again, Lady Ashley, wonderful to finally meet you and little Sarah, I have something interesting in store for you,” he winked at her and gave us all a big hug. I smiled awkwardly at the man, who gave us our outfits and ushered us to change.

“Don’t worry, the clothes will fit you like a glove, Lady Ashley, I got your and your daughter’s measurements from the Cordonian boutique. I am the famous Mario Dupont, after all, I will do anything to please,” he encouraged me as I walked into the dressing room. I was a bit skeptical at first because of the purple sequins I was seeing, but when I finally put on the bodycon dress, I was amazed. It fit exactly right everywhere, the shoes and the little purse that went with the outfit were even more sparkly than the dress itself and I felt like a sparkling princess. I walked out of the room very confident and the designer applauded.

“Mademoiselle, you look breath-taking. Amazing! Hot, ready for Paris!” he showered me with compliments. Then Hana exited the dressing room in a matching but a different dress- she was wearing a pink sequined bodycon dress.

“Lady Hana, you look fabulous! Seductive, beautiful!” the designer kept complimenting us. Then it was finally Sarah’s turn. Her outfit matched mine, but it was a purple sequined jumpsuit, with a tiny little bag for her and tiny little ballet flats.

“Wow, you’re beautiful!” I said in the dressing room and as we showed off Sarah’s outfit to Mario Dupont, who was clapping and faking shedding a tear.

“Now on to the makeup and hair!” he said excitedly as we walked back to the dressing room. There were two makeup artists and two hairdressers running around, doing everything and the room was much more full than before.

“Wow, the guys are going to have to wait for a long time to see us,” I smiled at Hana, who was sat down by a hairdresser.

“Oh no, the guys are in the fashion show, too,” Hana smiled at me.

“Whaaat?” I shot her a quick look.

“Oh yes, Mario always makes sure that every single one of his pieces can be worn by a man, too, so he designs matching things for men and women,” Hana giggled.

“Wait, so Liam’s in this, too?”

“Yup, they’re getting pampered in the other room. Even Drake, he came in late, and usually, Mario doesn’t allow it, but he made the exception.”

“I would love to see that,” I felt a giggle coming on as I imagined poor Drake wearing something other than a jean jacket. _I just hope his talk with his sister went well._

“Okay ladies, time for a quick rehearsal with your groups!” Mario said as he walked in. A quick rehearsal?

“Because our outfits match the guys, we’re going on as a group,” Hana whispered to me, explaining. She probably saw my confused look and realized I needed some instructions.

I took Sarah by the hand and both of us walked out, looking for the guys. I was so excited to see them in something else. The first person I saw was Bertrand, he was wearing the silver silk outfit, only his was a full-on nightshirt, it made me giggle. He even had a nightcap and everything.

“For the older generation,” Mario smiled as he saw me checking Bertrand out.

“I’m not that old!” Bertrand replied angrily as he looked at himself in the mirror. He did look like an old man and now I actually could see him being a father. _Or even a grandfather._

The next person I saw was Maxwell, who was wearing a short sleeve silver silk shirt and matching long pants and then Neville next to him, wearing almost the same thing, but he had shorts on. They both glared at each other.

“My sleepwear collection _est_ _Magnifique_ , no?” Mario asked me and I nodded. Bertrand’s piece was really _something_.

Drake came in with Liam, wearing a black jean jacket, white t-shirt, black jeans, and some converse. He looked at least five years younger, while Liam was in a pink sequin blazer, matching pants, and a coral shirt. I got so excited to see him on my team and then I realized why. Officially, he was Hana’s fiancé. He was matching with her.

“Hello,” I heard a dark husky voice and immediately knew it was Noah’s. I turned around and there he was, in the purple sequins, matching me. Of course. It was just my luck, wasn’t it?

Rashad came in, matching Drake, but his jeans and converse were blue.

Now everyone was here, and we all made our way to each other.

“Attention groups! We first start with my sleepwear collection, then goes my streetwear collection and then we’ll surprise them with my amazing glamour collection! And you move like this, this…” Mario talked and showed us how to move along the podium and what to do.

When we were finally ready, everybody started. Bertrand clumsily started walking first, everyone had a little laugh and then the girls came in, and then the guys. Everyone “ooed and aah’d”. Then Drake walked in with Kiara, who did a little twirl for everyone, then Rashad with Penelope, who did the same thing. They all did a power pose. When it was our turn, I felt my arms getting a little shaky, I took a deep breath and watched Hana walk in with Liam hand-in-hand, first, sharing a quick little dance. Then it was my turn to walk in with Noah, I did it so slowly and saw Liam looking at me, studying my face. We did the little dance and then I felt Noah’s hot breath on the back of my skin.

“Want to give them a little show?” he whispered. I shook my head and quickly turned around for the big finish – Sarah ran in, twirled around, and ran into my arms, where I lifted her. When I turned around, we all did a quick wave and waited for everyone to join us. Mario walked in super excited and giddy.

“Thank you for joining me for the best and biggest charity even of all time! This show means everything to me and I’m so glad we all got to experience it together!” Mario shouted and people were applauding.

“Mommy, am I star?”

“Of course. The biggest and brightest one yet!” I smiled at her.

*

After the show, Liam came into the dressing room, where it was just me and Hana. When Hana saw him, she excused herself and practically ran outside.

“Ashley?” Liam asked softly.

“Yes?” I smiled as I looked at him.

“You were wonderful there today,” he smiled at me and caressed my cheek. I leaned into his touch.

“You too,” I smiled shyly at him.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Is this why you didn’t kiss me in front of everyone? I guess I have no one else to blame but myself,” Noah entered the room and looked at both of us. He sighed theatrically. We instinctively moved away from each other like we were burned. I looked at Noah’s angry, distorted face. It was scary. He smiled like a maniac, kept pacing around and laughing.

“If you’re done here,” Liam started, and Noah looked straight at him, sneering.

“If I’m done? Me? No, pal, you’re done,” Noah said and pulled out a gun. In shock, I stared at the barrel of his gun and clenched my fists. _No…_


	32. The proposal

Liam smiled at him and I knew it was to infuriate Noah further so that he’d keep talking and get distracted. We weren’t the only ones in the building, and it was filled with bodyguards so someone was bound to go looking for us sooner rather than later. Noah was acting on his emotions, so this made him careless and distracted.

“You do realize that right now you’re threatening the wrong guy,” Liam said with a smile.

“Or you are,” Noah looked at his gun. It was pointed in the middle of both of us and he knew he would change the direction as soon as he figured out which one he wanted to get rid of first.

“Ashley, you minx. I actually believed you for a second, you know? I thought we could be something, but no. I had to catch you here, making lovey-dovey eyes at him,” he snarled at me and pointed at Liam as if he was an ogre.

“You’re not a half-bad actor yourself, Mr. Assassin. Send my love to the Lee family,” I smirked his way and he looked appalled at the information at my disposal.

“That explains your behavior.”

“Does it? ” I looked him straight in his eyes, my gaze unwavering. He looked intently at me, so intently that he didn’t even notice that Liam was moving in on him. When he realized it, it was too late, Liam was too close, so close that he slapped the gun out of his hands. I immediately ran to get it while they both were locked in a fight. I realized that the advantage of the gun was useless here because even if I tried to shoot Noah somewhere, I could hit Liam. I also didn’t know how or what to do – I had no experience with weapons, at all. I was relieved when I saw Bastien’s face heading our way along with Drake, Hana, and a few bodyguards. No matter what, I knew he wouldn’t let Liam get hurt.

“Hands off the King,” I heard Bastien say as Noah and Liam kept punching each other. I watched Bastien closely while everything unfolded right then and there.

He and the bodyguards took care of Noah and freed Liam from his grasp. His face was all bruised and he smiled when he looked at me. _We were safe_. A breath that I didn’t know I was holding in, escaped me. Liam looked at me and I knew he felt relief, too. Especially since I didn’t have to act around Noah anymore. I walked up to him, Drake and Hana and we all shared a group hug.

“What happened when I left you?” Hana asked and when we told her, I could feel the rage boil up in her. She looked up at both of us and muttered a “sorry”.

“Han, it’s not your fault,” I said, hugging her. She didn’t return it.

“Isn’t it? If I just went home, if Liam didn’t have to choose me, none of you would’ve been in any more danger than you’d have to. I didn’t see it as clearly before, but now I do. My parents are tyrants and will stop at nothing to get more power. Well, I’ll stop it. I’ll stop it alright,” Hana said, determined.

“Hana, what are you going to do?”

“Something I should have done a long time ago. No more games.”

*

“Are you ready for this?” we all looked at Hana, who was sitting in front of a laptop, alone.

“Yes. They deserve everything that’s coming for them,” she exhaled loudly, hit “record” and then pressed “call”.

“Finally! You’re two minutes late for the weekly call, you know that we have other things to tend to, don’t you, Hana?” I heard Mrs. Lee’s voice. She sounded like a relentless woman.

“Noah’s been arrested,” Hana said quietly.

“What? For what?” you could hear the worry in their voices.

“For attacking my fiancé, for treason against the royal family, for attempted murder, for threatening Lady Ashley. Do I need to go on? Would you know anything about this?” her voice was cold.

“How absurd! Why would we do anything to undermine your position as the King’s fiancé? We want you to be the Queen after all,” her mom said confidently.

“Yes, I know you do. Even if it means hiring an assassin to come and spy on us all the way in Cordonia.”

“Hana! How dare you speak to us that way? ” her father asked, and I saw Hana flinch a little. From fear. This went against everything she was taught as a child and I knew that it was heart-wrenching for her. But she stood there as the brave soldier she was.

“How dare I? You undermine me at every turn and chance you get. You don’t respect me or my opinions, all I’ve ever been to you was means to get ahead in life. That’s why I’m fluent in languages I don’t care about, I know how to play instruments I have no interest in and I know the etiquette book by heart, even though I hated reading it,” she said with a stone-cold face. Her parents looked beside themselves. The little girl they’ve used and controlled was finally rebelling. I felt like a proud mother at that moment, while her own mother was shell-shocked.

“Ever since you’ve gone to visit that God-forsaken country, you’ve not been acting like yourself. Of course, we had to send someone over to look after your well-being,” her father admitted.

“Noah is an assassin.”

“You have to believe me when I say that we didn’t send him to assassinate anyone,” her father’s voice was softer than before.

“He aimed the gun right at Lady Ashley today, Father, I’m sorry, I can’t believe anything you’re saying.”

“Hana, we are your parents, the people who raised you, fed you, stayed up with you when you were sick, how dare you act this way?”

“I’m canceling the engagement, Mother,” Hana said quietly. I stared at her in shock. Really? I looked up at Liam, who was standing beside me. He gently held my hand. I smiled. Hana was finally gaining her strength.

“What?” her mother’s voice was furious. You could hear Mrs. Lee’s anger through the video call.

“Your claim to power is over.”

“You can-can’t! That would humiliate you in front of the world! It would be blasphemy! King Liam needs to be engaged or married as soon as possible, it’s a Cordonian tradition!” her mother said nervously.

“No, Mother. It would humiliate YOU. And as for King Liam, I think he has that part covered,” she looked over to me and smiled. I smiled back at her.

“Hana, enough of this! ENOUGH! ”

“Mother, I..”

“I said enough! Enough of your craziness. I’m sending a private plane after you, you’re coming home until your wedding is finalized. You’re giving me a headache,” her mother sighed.

“No.”

“What do you mean no? Yes. Yes, you shall come home right away. This is not up for discussion. My darling girl, if you go through with this, do you know what will follow? Utter chaos for you. We will disown you and you will no longer be the heiress to the Lee dynasty which leaves you with no money and no lands to claim as your own. No one will care about a girl with no money and no land, so stop fantasizing,” her voice was determined. I looked at Hana, and now it was her turn to be shell-shocked. _Her mother has made her feel less than for the last time_ , I thought, and stepped into the picture.

“Oh, hello Mrs. Lee. A Lady with no land and no money here. I’d just like to say that Hana is one of my best friends and I absolutely adore her. Also, thank you for the assassin, what a nice gift, ” I smiled at her. She widened her eyes and hung up the video call. I turned to Hana and hugged her tightly.

“You did so well!”

“Really? It felt like a disaster. I still feel like a child when I talk to her,” she sighed.

“The only person who should feel bad is your mother. Also, we have a recording of her admitting involvement in Noah’s situation,” Liam said.

“Will this be enough to incriminate them?”

“It should be. Hana, are you sure you want to do this?” I looked at her, worried. It wasn’t easy standing up against your parents. Even if they sent an assassin. Even if they were horrible. At that moment, I remembered Paul. No matter how horrible he was, he had given me the gift of a lifetime, our daughter and for that I could not ever hate him. Despise him, sure, but I couldn’t hate him since there was also good in him. The good that I could see whenever I spent time with our daughter. No, he wasn’t pure evil.

“I’m very sure. First of all, they are criminals. Good people wouldn’t just have an assassin in their contact list, they actually trusted him enough to come with us here, which means they’ve used him before and know how he operates. Second – I’m sorry for ruining the plan so quickly, I just wanted to have something over them. To finally one-up them at their own game,” she sighed. I hugged her tighter.

“No worries, Hana, we’ll figure it out as soon as possible,” Liam said, smiling. 

“So what now – do you just announce the end of the engagement and we send the recording to the police?” I was worried. Worried that this sped up things by a lot.

“Yes, and yes. It will be tricky since your parents live in China, Hana, but I’ve been assured that any crimes against the Crown stand internationally. But the announcement has to be done in New York,” Liam said adamantly.

“Why New York?”

“We were all scheduled to go there anyway, and I thought I might accompany you to an event,” Liam smirked.

“You wouldn’t!”

“Me? Attend your ex-boyfriend’s wedding as your plus one to support you and Sarah, as a newly engaged couple? I would. I definitely would,” he smiled at me and squeezed my hand.

“He will be so mad.”

“Isn’t that the whole point?”

“Isn’t that also when Paul gets his first week with Sarah?” Hana asked.

“Ugh, don’t even remind me,” I sighed.

*

After the incident, Olivia made sure that we had our training time before going back to New York, so that’d I be prepared for everything. We trained vigorously, I was exhausted. No, not just exhausted. Extremely exhausted, mentally, physically but all I wanted was just a break. A break from all of this, from royalty, from the drama and the press that came with it. From thinking about Paul and how he would handle my little baby. We trained two mornings and two nights, before and after Sarah went to bed. My legs were just two jellies in the morning when we had to leave for New York.

“Mommy, I’m scared,” Sarah said as we boarded the plane.

“From what?”

“I don’t wanna go to my... dad’s,” she said the words with such a sad look on her face.

“Aw. Honey. I’ll be in New York the whole time, okay? You’ll get to meet your dad’s wife, we’ll spend a lot of time together during the wedding and then when you go with him, you’ll tell me all about it, when we’re together again, okay?” I tried to encourage her. It probably didn’t help that I was worried, too. I didn’t want her to go. She was mine. It was hard to accept that there was another person who wanted her. Even though I knew she would benefit from exploring the other side of her family. Maybe Paul would even introduce her to his own parents? She would get a whole set of grandparents that she wasn’t aware of. A whole new family she didn’t know. She might not be too fond of her father, but she might be fond of his other relatives. 

We snuggled throughout the plane ride quietly. No one was talking, not even Maxwell, which was unusual. I even looked around a few times just to make sure. Everyone was quiet, even Penelope. Something felt a bit off, but I shrugged it off. _Everyone’s just nervous_ , I said to myself. When we landed, everyone hurried off the plane as soon as they could. Even Liam and Hana. I looked at Sarah in surprise and she shrugged.

“New York makes people act weird,” she smiled and I had to agree. It did.

We walked off the plane slowly, Sarah wanted to walk slowly to enjoy the view. So I obliged. We slowly walked towards the airport, through the flashing paparazzi lights and into the black limo that Liam had prepared for us.

“That’s odd, I kinda expected to ride with Maxwell,” I sighed.

“Maxwell’s with Bertrand and Drake,” she answered quickly.

“Why would they... oh,” I said as I remembered what happened with Savannah.

“Wait, how would you know this?” I looked at Sarah suspiciously. She shrugged.

“I heard them talking today,” she said and I sighed.

“Are they okay? I didn’t even ask, ugh, I am such a bad friend,” I said.

“You’re the best mommy in the world,” Sarah replied and hugged me. At least I had that.

We stopped right in front of Madison Square Garden.

“I thought we were going to my parent's house,” I said, eyeing the driver suspiciously. I felt overwhelming paranoia. I knew Tariq was still on the loose. Was he kidnapping us? _He wouldn’t kidnap us and take us to Madison Square Garden_ , _it’s way too much of a public place_ , my inner voice calmed me down. We quickly exited the car and Sarah started running past me. I immediately followed her and cursed myself. She never did that in Cordonia, so I didn’t even think that she might pull a stunt like this here. I saw her run inside the building and followed her. She was quick and my legs were so tired, and they still felt like jellies. I was out of breath even quicker than I anticipated.

“Sarah?” I shouted when I was finally inside. It was strange, it was as if the building was empty. I started pacing nervously. _Where could she have gone?_

“Sarah? Where are you?” I shouted again, louder, and started walking around the dark hallway. Panic started to overwhelm me.

“In here, mommy,” I heard Sarah’s voice behind me and I saw her disappear through black doors. I sighed in relief. What was she doing there? I went through the dark doors and realized I was in the big arena. _Why would she take me here?_ It was dark and after I heard the doors close behind me, the whole arena lighted up. And there she was, standing beside the man I loved, smiling proudly.

“You’re so sneaky!” I laughed in relief when I looked at my daughter who grinned back. I walked towards the two of them only to realize that every single person I cared about was sitting or standing in the stands all around us. I looked in awe at all of them. My parents, my grandparents, a few cousins I was close with, my sister, my brother, and my Cordonian friends were all there – Hana, Drake, Maxwell, Bertrand, Kiara, Penelope, Olivia, and even Madeleine. I expected her the least, but I was still glad she was here. I had grown to have respect for this woman and, luckily, she respected me back. Liam’s father wasn’t there, but I was surprised to see Leo there, with his wife, smiling happily. Then I realized what this was. He was about to propose! And all of the people who actually supported us were here. It was all that actually mattered. I quickly ran up to them and as I did, Liam got on one knee. I couldn’t believe it, there he was, the man of my dreams, proposing to me on one knee, with my daughter beside him, smiling. I realized why everyone had been so strange this morning.

“I couldn’t tell everyone that we were engaged publicly, without actually proposing, could I?” Liam smiled. My emotions overwhelmed me and I felt tears rolling down my cheeks.

“No, you couldn’t,” Sarah said behind him.

“My dear Ashley, I know this isn’t the ideal time to do this, while Tariq is still on the loose and so much is happening, but I didn’t want to wait. Not anymore. We just dealt with another danger and as I’ve come to realize - there will always be something, a new crisis, a new threat, and all I ever wanted through this was to hold your hand and be with you. You make everything much much easier, ” he started.

I nodded, and pinched myself, just to know that I wasn’t dreaming all of this.

“I asked Sarah first if I could propose to you, and she said only if we did it this way,” he said quietly and I looked at my daughter who was smiling proudly back _. Oh my_. I couldn’t believe that this was my reality right now.

“Will you, Ashley Fabiano, make me the happiest man in the whole world, and marry me?” he shouted loudly so that everyone could hear.

“Yes,” I said with tears on my face and when he stood up, he pulled me into his soft embrace. I was trying to stop the tears from falling, but I couldn’t, they were rolling in just the same. Then he kissed me softly, but longingly. Finally! He quickly put the ring on my finger as if there was a time limit.

“And now the hard part,” Liam said as he kneeled down again. _The hard part?_ I raised an eyebrow.

“Will you, Sarah Fabiano, make me the happiest man in the whole world and be my daughter?” when he said those words, I saw Sarah even get a little emotional and run to him. They embraced and it was the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen. I even saw a tear roll down her little cheeks. _Like mother, like daughter,_ I thought. He gave her a little pink ring and she happily let him put the ring on her.

“Now we’re officially a family!” Sarah shouted and everyone in the room clapped. I looked over my little family. I didn’t need a ring to feel like a family with him, but this was the perfect moment.

*

“Ready?” Liam asked while we were getting ready for the public announcement. Everyone assured us that this had to be done right away so that no one had a chance to contest Liam’s rule as a King. But before Liam could even step up to the podium, a newscast appeared to everyone. On almost every screen. I cursed under my breath. Of course, this had to happen.

“My dear fellow citizens, I’m so sorry it has come to this but I have to declare that Hana Lee is no longer associated with the Lee family and we’re stripping her of her lands and titles. She has terminated her engagement with the King of Cordonia and is an embarrassment to our family. Thank you, God bless, ” Mrs. Lee’s stone-cold face said. I turned to Hana, whose face was in pure shock.

“Oh Han,” I hugged her.

“She couldn’t refrain from hurting me one last time, could she?”

“She’s a monster,” Olivia sneered.

“But how did she know we were here?” I asked and looked at Olivia.

“She definitely didn’t do this alone,” Olivia looked at me, and dread filled me. Could this be? Could Liam’s father be working with Hana’s parents? Or was I being too paranoid?

“Hana?” Maxwell came in and Hana ran to him for a hug. I was still shocked at Mrs. Lee. I knew she was angry, but she really wanted Hana to feel embarrassed.

“Hana, I will fix this,” he assured her.

“Oh, no, you don’t have to,” she started saying but Liam stopped her.

“It will be okay,” he said and walked onto the big podium, where everyone was, clearly, in shock over the news. I heard journalists scream questions at him and felt my confidence waver. I didn’t feel as brave as I did just moments before.

“First, I’d like to announce that my engagement to Hana is truly over. I’m sorry to say that it was never a real engagement, but it was made so to let Hana stay in Cordonia since her parents threatened that she will be taken back to China,” he said the words angrily and I heard people gasping. As we were. Was he really just outing the Crown’s dirty laundry like that?

“Her parents have been manipulating Hana since birth and I will not stand for this. They are also criminals that brought an assassin upon us. The assassin is now imprisoned and so will they, after the investigation is complete. Hana will still have full control over the Lee Estate in Cordonia, as the only remaining successor. Don’t let her parents fool you. Also, as a gift from us, I wanted to offer Hana the title of Duchess and a duchy to rule over. Unfortunately, we still have a lot of duchies that need a lot of care and strong leaders so they’d thrive. We are strong, but we always need to be stronger. Unified. Cordonia will definitely do better with the new Duchess on our side,” Liam said confidently. People were cheering. They were New Yorkers and this didn’t affect them at all, yet they cheered for Liam’s announcement and I was happy. Surprised and happy. Maxwell jumped from joy next to Hana, who now even managed a laugh.

“Congratulations Duchess Hana,” I hugged her and she just stared at me in disbelief, but her face exuded happiness.

“Can you even believe it? Me? A duchess?”

“Of course we can, c’mon, Hana!” Maxwell couldn’t hide his happiness.

 _Just kiss her already_ , I thought and smiled at the lovebirds.

“What about your engagement?”

“Are you with Lady Ashley?”

The questions were storming in.

“Ah, yes. C’mon out Ashley,” Liam asked and I stepped forward. The crowd roared.

“Our own New Yorker!”

“You did it!”

“You’re the best!”

I waved at everyone confidently. Not one frown. _This is good_ , I thought.

“In other news, I’ve proposed to Lady Ashley of New York and she said yes!” Liam said proudly. The crowd roared again.

“Thank you for your support, New York! See you at the wedding,” I smiled as we exited the podium and went behind the big, red curtain.

Liam’s phone kept buzzing so loud in his pocket that even I heard it.

“Answer it,” I said.

“No, I want to be in the moment with you, ” he kissed me on the cheek.

“Liam, it could be important.”

“It’s just... Bastien. He never rings me, that’s odd.”

“Answer it, I’ll be right there, ” I pointed to my sister and Sarah who were patiently waiting for us to finish.

Rachel screamed when she hugged me and I screamed back. I was so excited to see her after months of video calls and online chats. Real-life hugs were much much better. Sarah hugged us, too. It felt right. Like home.

“Can you even believe that Paul invited us to the wedding, too?” she chuckled. I quickly pointed at Sarah, who was listening in on the conversation, too, so that she’d know not to talk bad about him. Sarah didn’t need to know that, she had a chance to build her relationship with her father and I wasn’t about to ruin it. I didn’t want anyone blaming me, so I encouraged her interest in her father as much as I possibly could.

“I guess that’s his way of extending the olive branch.”

“Sooo nice of him!” Rachel said in her super fake voice.

“Are grandma and grandpa invited, too?” Sarah’s grin grew even bigger.

“Yes,” Rachel nodded.

“Now it’ll be a fun party, mommy,” Sarah said and I chuckled. With my family there, how could it not be a “fun” party?

I looked at Liam, who was standing there, all pale and concerned while still on the phone. I walked over to him and he held my hand.

“We’ll be right there, Regina,” Liam said and looked at me.

“What’s wrong?” I really didn’t like the look on his face.

“My father’s at the hospital, he had a heart attack,” he whispered.

“What?”

“Yes, Regina, we’re on our way. Is he stable? Thank you,” he sighed and hung up the phone.

“I’m so sorry, Liam.”

“Will you come with me?”

“Of course,” I smiled and he held onto my hand tightly. I was about to see the man who wanted me out of Cordonia but right now, I was engaged to his son. This was going to be a catastrophe from the start.


	33. The truth about Paul

The minute we stepped into the hospital, I felt nauseous and a little weak. I took a short breath and held onto the closest wall. Liam turned to me and held me.

“Woah, woah. Are you okay?”

“Oh. Yeah, totally, just a little dizzy,” I smiled at him.

“Ashley, we’re in the hospital, you could get that checked right away, you know,” Liam looked at me seriously.

“No, I’m sure it’s nothing,” I brushed it off but Liam was insistent so he took me to the closest nurse. I smiled at her and rolled my eyes at Liam.

“I just didn’t have much of a breakfast, that’s it, we should go check on your father,” I tried to avert his attention. The nurse was elderly and she nodded at me as if she understood.

“You should really go see your father, I’ll take good care of her, don’t worry,” the nurse assured Liam and convinced him to leave me. He didn’t want to, so she practically had to push him to the elevator.

“I’m sorry, he’s just so worried,” I sighed.

“We do get nervous boyfriends here a lot. I’ll just quickly check your blood pressure, and we’ll do a pregnancy test if that’s okay. Just a precaution, dear. And I promise to tell him that we did all the available tests, to ease his mind,” she smiled and I nodded.

“Thank you so much for doing this, he’s just being silly.”

“There’s nothing silly about it, dear. You’d be worried in his place, too, probably. Now when was your last period?” she smiled at me as she put the information into my chart.

“Oh, I have an app for that! I’ll just look,” I took out my phone. Ever since Sarah, I was paranoid about pregnancy things so I tracked all of my periods. As I clicked on it, the app flashed red and told me I was late. I stared at it for a few seconds. Could I actually be pregnant? _No, no, Liam used protection, it’s just from all the stress,_ I told myself.

“Dear?”

“Ah, yes. October 3rd, ” I said nervously.

“You realize that it was almost a month and a half ago? So you’re late,” the nurse turned to take a look at me.

“Yes. But couldn’t it be just the stress I’ve been under lately?”

“It could. It could be a variable of things. Have you recently started doing physical activities?”

“Yes,” I answered right away because I remembered the training I went through with Olivia.

“That could be it. Let’s do the test first, just to make sure,” the nurse tried to calm me down. She gave me a cup and in a matter of minutes, I was back and we were waiting for the test strip results. I wasn’t ready. I wanted more kids but I really wasn’t ready for another one, not just yet. When the test came back negative, I felt relief and disappointment at the same time. The nurse patted my back.

“So it was stress, just try to keep your stress levels low, you also have high blood pressure. And I’m sorry that you’re not pregnant,” she sighed.

“Oh no, that’s a good thing! I didn’t want to be,” I said slowly, looking at the test strip.

“It sure looked like you wanted it, just for a little bit.”

“Maybe. Maybe I do, for just like a little bit. But I also want to get married first,” I smiled at the nurse. When Liam was back, she told him the good news and we slowly walked back to the black limo.

“Sorry to drag you through that, I was just worried,” he confessed.

“I know. I’m honestly just a little sad that the test came back negative.”

“Were you?” he looked surprised.

“A little. I know it’s silly, but I like babies, they’re cute, okay?” I smiled.

“Then call me silly, too. I really thought that maybe, well,” he confessed and held my hand tight.

“Someday!”

“Someday definitely, yes,” Liam agreed.

“So how did it go with your father?”

“He’s alright. He has to be on bed rest for a long long while and he already hates it. He wants me to take care of some of his affairs.”

“Oh,” I smiled and squeezed his hand for support. He smiled back. The rest of the way we were silent. It was a little uncomfortable. There were so many things I wanted to tell him about his father and my suspicions but I didn’t. I knew I could trust him but this was delicate. So delicate, his father was his hero since he was a child. If anyone tried to tell me bad things about my own father, I’d be furious, too. Especially if it was my own partner. When we finally arrived at my parent's house, I felt like I could breathe again. I ran from the limo to their house and jumped on Rachel’s back as soon as I saw her.

“Hey!” she laughed and tried to shake me off.

“This is how excited I am,” I laughed. The door closed and we all turned to look at Liam who greeted everyone. Sarah was the first to run to him and introduce him to everyone as her daddy. It was such a heartfelt moment. When everyone got more comfortable, my parents jumped on the chance to talk to a Royal King, so they immediately took him to the kitchen to simply, as they put it, “talk to him”.

“You realize that you aren’t getting him back for a while?” Rachel laughed.

“Oh, I know. Now tell me what’s going on in your life,” I smiled at her.

“Mom and dad let me have a huge 18th birthday party if I pay for it myself,” she said excitedly.

“No way,” I gasped. I wasn’t allowed a huge party when I turned 18. Of course, I had a baby to take care of, but still. Our parents were strict on that front.

“I know! They finally gave in and told me that they won’t even attend, so I can do whatever I want. I think I’ll invite Dean, you know, the boy I’ve been seeing,” Rachel jumped around the room, joyful. I joined in with Sarah.

“So, you’re not dreaming about the next Duke of Carlsford, huh?” I teased her.

“We actually write each other long emails,” she smiled.

“Do you?”

“Yeah, but they’re not flirty like you might think, Ashley,” she shook her head.

“Me? I would never,” I laughed.

“We care about each other still and want to be in each other’s lives. We were just not meant to be,” she sighed. The way she said it sounded so mature, I was in awe of her.

“Wow, Rachel, that was really profound.”

“Was it? I’m just being realistic. Also, you never know what the future might hold.”

“That’s true. Now c’mon, we should totally go annoy Tom,” I said, laughing. We spent the whole evening making fun of my big brother and listening to my parents' conversation with Liam. They asked all about the customs and traditions of Cordonia, especially wedding traditions so that they’d be ready accordingly. It was sweet yet the way they phrased the questions was funny.

“I like your family,” Liam said when we finally got to bed in my old room. Sarah was sleeping with Rachel so that we could have “privacy”. Yeah, I wasn’t going to have sex in my parents' house in the old room I shared with Sarah, but at least we were alone.

“Thanks, I like them, too,” I laughed.

“But you’re not that fond of mine?”

“Regina and Leo are nice,” I started.

“But?”

“But your father, well, honestly, has been nice to my face. Here’s the thing – I have a gut feeling about this and I think he’s the one who was powerful enough to get Tariq out of prison,” I finally confessed and felt like a rock had been lifted from our relationship.

“Thank you for telling me, I know it has been eating you up inside,” he kissed my palms.

“A little. I mean, I noticed that they weren’t even present in our engagement, and, well, I was afraid to bring it up. I’d be sensitive about my father, too, so I get it. He’s your hero.”

“He’s not. Anymore. I have the same suspicions and, well, something’s been eating me up inside, too. Me and Drake were doing our own investigating into Bastien and my father, and well, things are about to change my love,” he whispered.

“Well, me and Olivia actually...”

“Had your own independent investigation and went back to Cordonia to look for Alana Porto?”

“How did you know?”

“Luckily, my father wasn’t there to get the call from the Police Chief himself, but I was. He asked if I could grant you two access to Alana Porto. Me and Drake already knew that something was up, but this just confirmed it. I said no, of course, because I knew my father would find out if anyone did grant access.”

“So he knows where Alana is?”

“Yes. I’ve also gathered quite the information and I thought that it’d be the perfect opportunity for us to investigate.”

“Huh?”

“While Sarah’s at her biological father’s care for the week, we can investigate. No one will question why I’m here for such a long period of time and neither will be our friends. Emotional support,” he smiled.

“Long period? A week isn’t that long,” I chuckled.

“For Cordonia it is,” he said seriously. We talked through the night about the plans, the investigating, Tariq’s whereabouts until we both fell asleep. 

“Good morning sleepyheads! You should start getting ready!” Sarah shouted as she ran into our room excitedly.

“Good morning,” I answered grumpily.

“Hi there,” Liam said as he looked at Sarah. I stared at him. I couldn’t believe how good he looked first thing in the morning. It was unfair so I jumped on both of them and we had a big pillow fight.

“Hey hey hey!” Rachel ran into the room.

“What?” Sarah asked when we stopped.

“We don’t have much time, we overslept, the wedding ceremony starts in two hours,” Rachel shook her head.

“Two hours? We’ll be late!” I gasped as I ran to the closet to take out the dress I was wearing.

“What’s the big deal? Two hours is a lot of time to get ready, isn’t it?” Liam asked.

“Not if we all share a bathroom and it’s a thirty-minute drive to the venue,” Rachel explained.

“One bathroom? I’m going first,” Liam darted for the bathroom.

“What? That’s unfair,” I shouted and laughed.

“I know. I’m not even going to wash my hair, I’ll just put dry shampoo on it,” Rachel rolled her eyes.

“What? Why? I won’t be too long.”

“You and Liam are going to be the ones everyone is going to pay attention to anyway,” she said. I shook my head.

“People are going to be looking at you. I’ve noticed you’ve gained quite the PictaGram following in the last months and some magazines did interview you.”

“Just some quick interviews over the phone, so that doesn’t count. And yes, I’ve gained some traction on PictaGram but it’s not going to last,” she sighed.

“Why not?”

“I’m a little ... boring. I just post my boring life while my sister’s over in Cordonia, and in love with the King. Now, tell me, why would they follow me instead of you?”

“Honestly, you don’t give yourself enough credit.”

“Yeah, Rachel, you’re so fun! I have fun with you all the time!” Sarah said and hugged Rachel.

“You guys, I missed you!”

“You could always visit us,” I smiled at her and she nodded her head.

“You know what? I think I will. At least one weekend a month, how does that sound?” Rachel asked excitedly.

“That would be..”

“AMAZING!” Sarah finished the sentence for me.

“Hey so, I kind of realized I didn’t take my clothes with me in the shower, so everybody close your eyes,” I heard Liam say as he walked into the room. The girls closed their eyes dramatically while I looked Liam up and down. He smiled shyly and the girls ran out of the room giggling.

“Shower hog,” I laughed.

“I wanted to smell nice for the big day.”

“You want to be a show-off,” I whispered in his ear.

“Honestly, this might be the first time I really really do want to show off to everyone,” he smiled and planted a kiss on my forehead.

The next hour everything was in chaos, my siblings were running around looking for their clothes, while I was trying to put on makeup in the bathroom. It was a huge mess but when we were done, at least we looked nice. Liam wore a purple tux, Sarah had a purple little dress and I wore a purple cut-out dress. It was a little short for a wedding, yes, but I did want to look fabulous. My hair was let down but I had a little purple bow on it.

“Perfect, you three look like a family,” Rachel said while taking our picture.

“You look perfect too, Rachel,” Sarah said, looking at Rachel’s dress. It was red and short. Perfect for boys noticing her. Our mother wasn’t too happy, but she didn’t say anything. Not in front of Liam, at least, but at least Rachel was happy. Tom wore a blue tux, matching my father’s and our mom wore the yellow dress that she wore to everything that required a dress. I was itching to buy her a new one, but she wouldn’t have it. This was our father’s favorite dress on her, they both loved it, so it meant that it had to be worn on every occasion possible.

When we walked out the door, I waved at the bodyguards stationed in front of my parents' house. They smiled back.

“How many bodyguards are here usually?” Sarah asked when she looked at my parents.

“Oh, about 2-3,” my mother answered when we entered Liam’s huge limo.

“That little? Do you know how many bodyguards Liam has at his house?”

“No, how many?”

“A lot. One in every corner, grandma! Can you even believe it?”

“Wow, so you’re in very secure hands, darling,” my mother said as she smiled at Sarah, who agreed.

The whole ride Sarah talked about random things and birds she saw in the palace. My parents “oohed” and listened to her stories intently, which warmed my heart. Sarah was an excellent storyteller.

“Here we go,” Liam said as he exited the car first. He gave me his hand and I could hear our name’s being called by the paparazzi as we walked into the church.

“I thought you couldn’t get married in a church if you had relations before marriage,” Rachel whispered into my ear.

“Maybe the church has gotten with the times,” I winked at Rachel and we had a little giggle.

And there he was, in all of his glory, in his silver tux. Paul was greeting all the guests. I smiled at him but he didn’t look as happy to see me.

“Did you have to bring the King with you?” he whispered angrily in my ear.

“Nice to see you, too, Paul!” I ignored him and smiled.

“Hello sweetheart,” Paul looked at Sarah, who was holding Liam’s hand at the moment.

“Hi,” Sarah answered nonchalantly.

“Are you excited to be my flower girl?”

“Are the flowers going to be pretty?” she asked, looking at him suspiciously.

“Of course! Come with me,” he smiled as he approached her. She took a step back and hugged Liam instead. Paul’s face was unreadable but I knew he was angry. A little vein popped out of his neck.

“C’mon, sweetheart, everybody’s waiting for you,” he said, a little annoyed. Liam whispered something in Sarah’s ear. She looked so excited and then agreed to go with Paul. I felt my heart ache. Paul took her hand and they walked through the door together. It felt like my heart was transported to wherever she was.

“Oh God, how am I going to go a week without her?” I looked at the door that she went through.

“I miss her already,” Liam agreed.

“So what did you say to her to convince her to go with him?”

“Oh. Well, I promised her as much cake as she wanted,” he smiled sneakily.

“You did not!”

“I did and it worked.”

“I didn’t even know she liked cake that much,” I smiled and shook my head. We found seats at the very end and I kept looking at the little door, waiting for her to scream my name. To come and get her. She didn’t. And it hurt.

When the pastor arrived, the ceremony was finally starting. Everyone looked tense. Paul stood there, at the end of the aisle, fidgeting. Sarah came out, looking like a darling, slowly throwing the flowers. Everyone awwed.

“Hi, mommy!” Sarah said when she saw me and I waved back. _My little heart._

Everyone laughed at her little comment and then she stood there at the end of the aisle, while someone else’s baby brought the rings out. Her bridesmaids walked very quickly. Then Prissy appeared. At least, that’s what Paul said her name was. Prissy. She looked gorgeous, her face was glowing, her blonde hair was long and her stomach was huge but that didn’t stop her, no. A man walked next to her, looking very proud. At that moment, I wanted to pull the girl aside and ask her if she _really_ wanted this. I wanted to tell her that there was a way out of this relationship if she thought that this was going to change anything. Yet, I just sat there, admiring her.

After the ceremony, Sarah ran up to me and told me how much she missed me. Meanwhile, she had no idea how much I missed her and hated the idea of her not being with me for a whole week. We sat back into the limo, getting ready to go to the venue their party was at.

“Is it horrible if I want to just take Sarah and bolt?” I whispered to Liam.

“Is it horrible if I’m actually considering it?” Liam looked at me seriously.

“I think it is,” I let a breath out. The paparazzi followed us all the way to the venue. I wasn’t too surprised but the thing that amused me was, knowing how Paul hated all of this. That the paparazzi were taking pictures of us, that every guest was staring at us, knowing that there was a king among them.

We slowly walked into the venue – it was outdoors, with huge tents, music, designated spaces for kids, a bartender. All things considering, it was nice. A few brave people even came up to us and asked for pictures of me and Liam, so that they could put them on their PictaGram. Of course, we agreed and they were so excited. After a while of taking selfies with people, Paul came up to us and asked for a conversation. We nodded and walked his way, to a little secluded area where Prissy was waiting.

“Nice to actually meet you,” she seemed friendly.

“Nice to meet you, too,” I said, shaking her hand.

“I just had a few questions,” Prissy started.

“Of course,” I nodded.

“Does Sarah have any allergies? How does she go to sleep? What does she eat?” as Prissy asked all of these, I realized that it probably won’t be Paul looking after her most of the time. And honestly, I felt a little relieved. I answered all of her questions and Prissy lead me away from the guys.

“Thank you for coming.”

“Of course. Sarah shouldn’t miss her own father’s wedding.”

“Calling him a father is a stretch, we both know that,” she smiled as she looked at me.

“Honestly, yes, it is,” I admitted.

“I’m actually very sorry about this. This was all my fault. When we started dating, I didn’t even know that he had another child, I had no clue, he never brought the topic up.”

I nodded. Sounded like him.

“Then I got pregnant, and he told me to not go crazy because he had gone through this once already. I pressured him into telling me what that meant and then he told me that he had a child somewhere in the world. And that’s when I made him reach out,” Prissy sighed and she sounded so sad. So sad that I had this gut feeling to hug her, so I did. She sobbed on my shoulder. _This is why he wanted to “meet” Sarah. This explained a lot,_ I thought.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to, it’s just, hormones,” she wiped a tear from her cheeks.

“No, don’t apologize.”

“And that’s when I pulled an ultimatum. I know, it’s wrong, but I couldn’t bear the thought of this little girl going through life, not knowing her father. I mean, every little girl should know their father. So I told him that if he didn’t become a presence in her life, he wouldn’t see... us,” she pointed at her stomach. Everything suddenly seemed clear. Too clear.

“That explains a lot,” I nodded.

“But I didn’t think. I didn’t think that you didn’t have him in your life for a reason, that you never wanted this. I didn’t think that he would bring you to court and be so cruel there. We had our ups and downs, we went to therapy and well, he proposed. And I agreed,” she sighed. I hugged her.

“You know, nowadays a divorce is always an option, right?”

“Oh yeah, I know. I just... I’m afraid to do this alone. And I know you’re worried about Sarah, but I promise I’ll take care of her. I will do everything so that little girl feels wanted and needed in our house, she is so precious,” Prissy said, and honestly, everything she said, made me feel a lot better. I still wasn’t happy that I wouldn’t be seeing Sarah for a week, but I realized that at least Sarah will spend some time with a woman, who truly was a good person.

“If anything goes wrong, here’s my number,” I took her phone and entered my number in it. We talked about her relationship with Paul, and I did tell her that if anything, she could do it alone. No matter what he said. Prissy seemed to like that. She stopped crying, I helped fix her makeup and we walked back to the general area. I spent the rest of the wedding dancing with my family and we all had fun taking silly pictures with strangers. It was like we were celebrities of some sort, we all loved it.

When the wedding was over, Prissy walked over to me and I handed her a bag of Sarah’s things. I hugged her so tight and felt like running away with her. I felt my heart being crushed in a million little pieces when I saw her giving her hand to Prissy and walking away to their car. Paul smiled and put her bag in the trunk and they all laughed at something. Like a little family. Did Paul feel this way when he saw me with Liam? I was doubtful.

“Love?” I heard Liam’s voice behind me. I didn’t react, so he hugged me from behind. He held me like that for a while until I turned around and buried my face into his chest. I didn’t cry, but I felt miserable.

“Is she crying?” I heard a familiar muffled voice ask.

“No, just upset,” Liam answered.

“Oh.”

“Well, she is going to get even more upset,” a man’s voice said.

“Why?”

“The facility where Alana Porto was held burned down yesterday.”

It was a bad dream. It just had to be.


	34. The Reveal

“What do you mean?” I asked when I turned my head. Olivia and Drake were standing there, looking grim. I looked into Olivia’s eyes for confirmation. She nodded her head slightly and something in me just felt so sick. I turned to look at Liam. He was visibly shaken.

“I did this to her,” he whispered.

“No, ” Drake shook his head and put his hand on Liam’s shoulder to comfort his best friend.

“No, I did. I was obsessed with the idea of being harsh so that she could maybe see the error in her ways and tell us the truth. Do you remember how surprised she was to find out we were going to be gone for months? She looked scared. She must have known that someone could get her from the inside.”

“I think so, too. But it’s not your fault. You can’t blame yourself because she wasn’t exactly cooperative with us, at all. Her actions hurt Ashley. Of course, you’d seek vengeance, ” Olivia took a step forward.

“No. This was my own doing,” he shook his head.

We all stood there for a moment, silent. I didn’t know what to say or how to comfort a man who clearly felt guilty enough for the two of us. I just couldn’t believe it. Something told me that there was more to the story.

“Was the body found?” I interrupted our moment of silence. Everyone looked up at me.

“It was burned to the ground, Ashley,” Drake sighed.

“But surely there must be human remains. Something to indicate that she really was there when it happened,” I was relentless.

“Ashley, I don’t think anyone would let her live. She knows far too much and even Liam’s father knew how much we needed her,” Drake kept talking. I looked at Liam and something changed in him. He looked a little more hopeful than before. He squeezed my arm, and I knew he believed my hunch. Someone wanted us to think that she couldn’t be found anymore.

*

The next morning we invited Olivia and Drake over to my parent’s house to discuss how to go about this. I couldn’t imagine Olivia walked into my childhood home, but there she was, red hair and all.

“How… charming,” Olivia said with a smile.

“It’s no castle in Cordonia but we quite enjoy it,” my mom answered with a smile. Olivia kept walking around, amazed that so many people could fit into such a little living space.

“And you’re not considered poor?” Olivia asked.

“Oh, no dear. In New York, most people live in ever smaller apartments!”

“Smaller?” she gasped.

“Olivia, surely you knew that not everyone could afford to live in luxury castles all the time,” I said, shaking my head, judging her a little.

“Hey, I knew it! But seeing it and believing it is quite different. I’m not saying it’s bad. Let me get used to it,” she sighed and with that, I could agree. When you’re surrounded by such luxury, you can quickly forget that not everyone lives like that. When Olivia sat down in the kitchen, it just looked so amusing. My Cordonian life was mixing with my family life and that felt strange. Blending of my two worlds. I couldn’t imagine Olivia living in New York, renting an apartment, going to a normal 9-5 job. It was bizarre even in my wildest fantasies.

My parents made coffee for all of us and closed the door to the kitchen. We all knew we were safe here - the bodyguards were everywhere and no one that didn’t belong couldn’t eavesdrop in on our conversation. At this time, it was vital.

“So how’s Savannah?” I asked Drake as nonchalantly as I could. We still had to wait for Maxwell, Hana, and Bertrand, so I tried to pass the time.

“Oh. She’s good. She decided to move to Cordonia, actually,” his lips hinted at a smile.

“Really? What changed her opinion?” Liam asked.

“Bertrand finally convinced her. He said he wanted to be an active part of his son’s life. He wanted her to move into the Beaumont Estate, but she wouldn’t have it. They’re not together, so she’s moving in with me when we come back.”

“With you?” Olivia nearly spit out her coffee.

“Yeah, why?”

“You live in a room. It’s not that big, yet you would have your sister and her infant son move in? Where would you put his crib? Toys? Kids need space. That’s cruel, especially for the baby,” Olivia shook her head.

“What would you know about having kids?” Drake glared at her.

“Apparently, more than you,” she sneered at him.

“Okay, no fighting, please. Drake, I’d be more than glad to give her a duchy to rule, if she wished to,” Liam said.

“What? No, no, I don’t think she’d want that. It’s a lot, she can handle a baby, but not a duchy. Trust me, that would be way too much for her. But I did have my eye on a suite on the ground floor. The one we broke into as kids?” Drake smiled.

“Ah yes. Lucky number 11. I’ll have that fixed right up for her, no problem,” Liam smiled back.

“How are you this generous with your duchies?” I elbowed Liam lightly. He laughed.

“It’s no secret that I can’t be everywhere. And there are quite a few duchies with no one to take care of them. Not to say that the people there aren’t cared for – they most definitely are, but I have to go there a lot and talk to the representative bodies myself, sign executive orders, make sure everything there is going smoothly. It’s very time-consuming and I have to do a lot of paperwork myself. It’s easier with duchies that have Dukes or Duchesses since they live there and are representatives of the area, they know about the issues of their people and can bring them to my attention. If there were more Dukes and Duchesses’, I could assign a day of the month for these issues to be brought up, have them come to me and it would free up a lot of my time and I could have everything in front of me and make executive decisions right then and there,” Liam sighed.

“So it’s purely selfish of you,” Olivia said, and we all looked at her. What?

“Olivia, I assure you that it wouldn’t just be easier for me, it’d be easier for everyone, otherwise people have to wait a long time until I get there, and I try to go…”

“Oh, calm down, it was a joke. Of course, it’s not purely selfish. You’re assigning people you personally believe in, and I think it’s very ballsy of you since there aren’t that many Cordonian royals, ” she crossed her arms and smiled at him.

“There are going to be a lot of government changes when I come back,” he sighed.

“What kind of…” I started talking but then the door of the kitchen was opened, and Maxwell walked in. Behind him, Hana and Bertrand entered. Hana looked slightly shy, her cheeks were red while Bertrand looked straight up angry and aggravated. I turned to Maxwell, who was smirking the whole time.

“What happened?” Olivia stared suspiciously at all of them.

“Bertrand interrupted something… important,” Maxwell smiled.

“You didn’t just tell me that Bertrand walked in on you having…”

“Relations, yes. Precisely. I walked in to see what took them so long to get ready because we were going to be late and then I knew,” Bertrand looked disgusted even remembering it. I would be too if I walked in on my brother.

“Hana, I didn’t know you were THIS kinky,” Olivia smirked.

“Olivia!” I gasped at her.

“What?”

“She’s embarrassed enough!”

“Bertrand didn’t knock, so really it’s his own fault,” Maxwell said and sat down. He looked a little amused even. Hana sat next to him and her face was still red. I really didn’t want to be in her shoes right now.

“How is it my fault that you don’t own a watch?” Bertrand sneered.

“Enough!” Drake said and stood up for a dramatic effect. Everyone stared at him and calmed down.

“Way to ruin the fun,” Olivia rolled her eyes.

“We’re here to discuss more important things. Now Maxwell, tell us what you find out,” Drake said and turned to Maxwell.

“Is it just me or he looks so damn hot when he’s that serious?” Olivia whispered to me so that only I could hear.

“It’s just you,” I nodded at her.

“No one died in the fire, Alana was saved by a fireman, but then a man came in and signed for her to supposedly take her to another mental institution in the chaos,” Maxwell said, suddenly all serious. It was strange to watch him transform his goofy personality into this serious man.

“So, where was she?” I asked.

“In a mental institution,” Maxwell said sadly.

Liam hit the table with his fist. No one said anything but we all looked at him.

“It’s my fault. We have to save her while we still can,” he said, with anger in his eyes. I held his hand and it seemed to relax him a little.

“Anyone have any clues about her whereabouts?” I asked as I looked around the room. The door opened again, and I was about to shout at my parents that this was important, Bastien’s face popped in. I stared at him in shock, while Drake smirked, and Alana followed him.

“I heard everyone was looking for her?” Bastien said. Drake stood up to hug Bastien. Liam did the same, while me and Olivia eyed him carefully.

“Olivia, darling, you can’t be seriously still suspicious of me. And you, too, Lady Ashley,” Bastien shook his head.

“Well, she did stay in your cabin,” Olivia said. Alana stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do or say. But there she was. Alive and well. It felt like a burden was lifted right under me.

“Of course, who else to help her than a trusty friend on the inside?” he smiled.

“Okay, can anyone explain this to me? You are the man that Maxwell was talking about? You took her? And you knew, Drake?” I turned to him.

“I didn’t even know that she was safe just yet, I haven’t spoken to Bastien in over 24 hours, I just texted him to meet us here if he was available and he told me he will, nothing else, ” Drake sighed in relief.

“Okay, so someone please talk and explain this to the rest of us,” Olivia snapped.

“I will, Scarlet Duchess, don’t worry. No need to get snappy. When King Constantine was young, he had an idealistic world view which was great. He helped his own people, as we all know, set in motion the LGBTQ+ rights movement and helped us overcome a lot of economic hardships. His money was getting tighter with every passing bill and yet the people weren’t happy. He wasn’t rated very well in the polls, people wanted more and more. They wanted more of his personal life and of course, he wouldn’t have it. He got even more furious by the day. How dare the common people treat him like that? Who were they to judge this great King that did nothing but help them? Both of his parents died, then your mother, Liam, and he just lost it. He became obsessed with alcohol, women and, of course, we had that covered up so that the press wouldn’t know. They’d have a field day if they knew. I was your father’s right-hand man for years and yet, he never listened to my advice or wanted to hear it. I was just a man who wanted something from him, a pay-check, nothing more, nothing less. You and Leo were growing up, yet this one couldn’t sit through one meeting while sober. Regina was in one of those meetings and she saw how broken this man was and how broken Cordonia had gotten under his rule, so she stepped up. She made him clean up his act, to stop embarrassing us all and be the King we all knew and loved,” Bastien sighed.

“And?” Olivia rolled her eyes. The story so far was interesting. I never thought of King Constantine not able to be sober for one meeting. I shushed Olivia so that Bastien would continue. He smiled at me gratefully.

“And while Cordonia was so poor, a wealthy family came to rescue it. The royals had also grown unhappy, they thrived only because of the tax system but King Constantine hadn’t been paying attention to the taxes or anything, for that matter, because he didn’t care, his drinking had consumed him. Regina convinced King Constantine to raise the taxes, and then when the commonwealth people were unhappy about the state of their schools – the wealthy family came into play and helped everyone out. They built new schools, built new apartment blocks, social housing. Lots of the things Constantine couldn’t afford to do just by himself. They were a family of four. Parents, a son and a daughter,” Bastien looked at all of us and then it dawned on me.

“That’s why they didn’t kill you right away!” I looked at Alana.

“Huh?” Maxwell stared at me.

“She’s Tariq’s sister!” when I said the words, everyone gasped.

“You’re wrong. Yes, I am his sister, but they did try to kill me. Someone did burn down the whole building just to shut me up,” she said quietly.

“Why would they want to kill you?”

“I know too much. I hated doing this. They knew I’d tell on them if I ever got a chance, so why bother with a liability? I know all of their secrets, also Tariq’s whereabouts. Why would they keep me?”

“Who is “they” you’re all referring to?” Olivia eyed us all.

“Isn’t it obvious? My parents,” she sighed.

“I don’t think it was your parents. I think it was my father working with someone,” Liam turned his head to her.

“Bastien?” we turned to him.

“I didn’t finish my story,” he actually looked upset that no one let him finish.

“Go on then,” Drake murmured and Bastien nodded.

“So the family of four were indeed, Alana, Tariq, and their parents. The parents had a mansion, and they wanted more land and more of Cordonia in exchange. Applewood Manor, too, of course. King Constantine agreed, after all, they were his biggest allies right now. Then, Tariq had gotten into some legal trouble. Of course, the King had to bail him out. Again. And again. The crimes got worse, but the King still helped, he owed a lot to this family, you know?”

“And then what?” Olivia asked as she looked at Bertrand, enjoying his tale.

“I paused for dramatic effect but since we don’t have a lot of time, I should be fairly quick. One day, I was trying to reach His Majesty, but he wasn’t available. So I came looking for him in his study where I heard him shout about Tariq and how he had been sick of clearing him out of these crimes, it was embarrassing to call the Police Chief every week and to explain the matters to him. I stormed in, asked what in the heavens was that, and that’s when he cracked. He told me how he’d been covering up Tariq’s crimes. Apparently, Tariq was not only targeting these women for his own sick pleasure, but his sister was taking pictures so that it looked like they were there of their own merits and wanted this. Then later, they blackmailed the families, the girls, sometimes even their husbands, or else a scandal would unfold. In this high and mighty society, a scandal this big would not only ruin them but make people bankrupt. So they paid a lot of money to get the pictures back and stay quiet. It’s a family business of some sort,” Bastien said as he looked at Alana who looked ashamed. We all gasped, and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I looked at Alana and she sat there, with her head hung low, cheeks red, and tears in her eyes.

“Yes, I did help my family. But I didn’t do it for the extortion money!” she said loudly.

“Are you saying you _liked_ doing it?” Olivia looked at her in disgust.

“No. Of course not. I would never. I didn’t even know about the things going on behind the scenes with my brother until it was already too late. I knew the extortion side of it, but I would have never guessed that my own brother would … be a monster,” she sighed in defeat.

“How could you not know?” Olivia sneered.

“Olivia!” I shouted at her so that Alana would continue.

“What? It sounds pretty believable that she and her parents were into it and she’s only sorry that she got caught,” Olivia rolled her eyes.

“Alana?” I urged her to explain. She took a big breath before talking, composing herself.

“You want the full story, Olivia? Here it is, my parents immigrated to America when my mother was pregnant with Tariq. The doctors back home told her that the baby had a slim chance of surviving, yet, she delivered a pretty healthy boy. And then I came along. Tariq was the miracle child, he could do no wrong. He was smart, cunning, a real businessman. He was SO smart that he even got a full-ride scholarship to New York University. He had a double major – Economics and Business Management. Soon after he got a great job, everything came easy to him. Too easy, he didn’t like it. So he created his own business, to challenge himself. The business was a success, too much too fast, he got bored, he sold his business for a fortune and started investing in real estate, everywhere in the world. He easily paid off my university tuition and told me that he wanted to do something, just the two of us when I’m finished with my degree. He promised to introduce me to some of the more promising faces, models, and such, so I could flourish in my newfound passion in photography. How could I say no?”

“When it’s Tariq _, easily_ ,” Olivia eyed her.

“Olivia!” I looked at her again.

“What? She should know that her brother is an ass,” she rolled her eyes.

“Olivia, it’s the closest ones to us that we’re oblivious to,” Bertrand said with a cold stare at Maxwell. Maxwell smiled awkwardly as a response.

“Yeah, you can’t really blame her for what her sibling did,” Drake agreed and crossed his arms. He motioned for Alana to continue.

“He told me that he needed to prove that some of the ladies who claim to be so pure are liars and cheaters. I didn’t agree with that, we got into an argument and he, of course, told me that we were family, and I should help him as he once helped me, with my university tuition,” she sighed.

“So, he blackmailed you like everyone else,” I said quietly. Alana nodded.

“He knows your weakness and he doesn’t strike unless he’s sure of the outcome. So he told me that either I help, or I should forget all of the connections he promised to help me with, to further my career. So I helped. He assured me that these ladies were asking for it, it was their own fault and consensual,” she sighed heavily.

“Some of the girls probably looked disgusted at first, didn’t you find it strange?” Hana inserted herself into the conversation.

“Yes, and no. Sometimes he used whips and chains, as far as I saw, and I just thought it’s some sort of weird sex kink. I didn’t judge. Not at first. But I know you wanted to hear about Ashley, and I’m so sorry. Honestly. I hadn’t done this in years and then my brother came barging in, promising me that she was dangerous to the crown. I never thought that he… He told me that you were not fit to be Queen. The King even confirmed it in a conversation the three of us had together. Tariq promised that to be the last job I did for him, he said he wouldn’t hold anything against me anymore and that I should help him expose you one last time. He needed the pictures as proof, as security so that you wouldn’t be the King’s fiancé and since I had a low opinion of you, and they told me that you were screwing around with Drake right behind Liam’s back and flirted with Tariq… Well, I just didn’t have a reason to distrust my brother, ” when she finished, we all looked away, in our own thoughts. It was hard to hear that Liam’s own father had fabricated all these lies about me. I adored his son, but he did everything that was in his power to destroy that.

“I have to ask, why did you return when we booked you? ” Liam stared at her. At first, he looked angry but the longer he stared at Alana, the more empathetic his look got. Alana took a while to compose herself.

“I needed cash, honestly. The lump-sum you offered was a lot more than my going rate and since I wasn’t taking any money from my parents or Tariq anymore, I needed a break. When I saw Ashley buddying it up with Drake, I thought it’d be a great angle to also sell to the press, the budding romance between them, ” she sighed.

“Drake and Ashley, that’s all in the past, isn’t it?” Olivia stared at both of us.

“Of course, I’m engaged,” I answered quickly.

“Yes, I wouldn’t hit on my best friend’s girl… twice,” Drake smiled awkwardly.

“Olivia, you sure know how to make us all feel awkward,” Maxwell said with a smile and we all turned our attention back to Alana.

“Tariq did say to stay away from you and that if I ever get caught, it’s on me. He wouldn’t help and I knew my parents – they worship Tariq. I knew that they had some pull with the King and would use it against me. I was in shock and that’s why I was so cocky at first, you needed me for information, it wasn’t the other way around. But when I realized that Liam turned the tables on me, and you were going away, I just lost it,” she sighed.

“Is that where Bastien came in?” Hana asked, still staring at Alana and focused on her story.

“Yes. When I got transported, I thought that this is it, they are getting rid of me. But he calmed me down and told me that he’d help me. He told me that Liam was a fair King and he’d make sure I’m safe if I helped you with finding my brother. I agreed. So he transported me here, to New York, to my own parents who gladly took me in, for a day. When I confronted Tariq about you, Ashley, but he denied everything, he told my parents that I was insane and being crazy. Even they thought that everything was consensual. Me, saying all these things, seemed too crazy for them, so they locked up like my intelligent brother suggested and my guess is that they wanted to shut me up forever,” she looked at me with tears in her eyes. I felt the need to hug her, so I did. Everything that girl has been through these last few weeks sounded traumatizing.

"For what it's worth, I don't think it's your parents who did this. I wholeheartedly believe it was Tariq's doing," I tried to comfort her. I knew it wasn't much, but they did lock her up in a mental institution, they probably just thought that she had a mental breakdown. They wouldn't try to off their own daughter, would they?

“So Bastien, when did you switch sides?” Maxwell ruined the moment of silence we all had.

“I didn’t switch sides. I was always on Cordonia’s side,” he smiled proudly.

“That’s good. We need all the help we can get, I know where Tariq is. I also know all of the properties he owns in New York," Alana said confidently.

“Then let’s go and end it once and for all,” Liam stood up but Bastien shook his head.

“We need a plan, you know everything always works better when there’s a plan involved,” Bastien said quietly but firmly. Liam sat back down.

“Okay, let’s do this,” he said and squeezed my hand. The future seemed a little brighter than the day before.


End file.
